Ride-hailing platforms operating in Malta will have to verify drivers through facial recognition at least once every three hours under new rules linking booking apps directly with Transport Malta.
The recurring check is intended to confirm that the person signed into a platform and operating a Y-plate passenger vehicle is the authorized driver. It adds an identity control to a wider regulatory package governing app-based cab services, driver hours, dispatch information and payments to the transport authority.
Platforms must establish direct system integration with Transport Malta and supply live operational data. The authority will use the connection to monitor compliance, while operators will be responsible for ensuring that only registered drivers use their accounts. Similar account-sharing concerns have prompted facial checks for Bolt, Uber and Yango drivers in Azerbaijan.
The Maltese rules also require apps to prevent a driver from working more than 12 hours in any 24-hour period. That limit applies across the platform’s operations and is designed to place an enforceable ceiling on driving time rather than relying only on manual records.
Another provision changes the information shown before a trip is accepted. Self-employed drivers who operate no more than four vehicles will be entitled to see the proposed fare and destination in advance. The measure distinguishes small operators from larger fleets and gives qualifying drivers more information before deciding whether to take a booking.
Booking platforms will pay Transport Malta a tariff based on trip volumes. The authority’s operator guidance sets out separate arrangements for licensed light passenger transport operators and for digital platforms that connect those operators with customers.
The facial recognition mandate focuses on the driver side of the transaction, while other ride-hailing services have also expanded checks for passengers. Uber, for example, has introduced passenger identity verification using Prove technology in an effort to provide drivers with stronger assurance about riders.
Malta’s approach combines recurring biometric authentication with real-time regulatory reporting. Platforms must enforce the three-hour identity check, a maximum 12-hour shift within each 24-hour period and live operational data transfer to Transport Malta. The requirements place driver authentication, fatigue controls and platform reporting within the same regulatory system.
Sources: Lovin Malta, Transport Malta
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By the ID Tech Editorial Team
