Starting July 1, NC will add a tax to rideshare fares and legally recognize mobile driver’s licenses as valid forms of ID.
NORTH CAROLINA, USA โ Starting July 1, two new lawsย will take effect in North Carolina โ one that could slightly increase the cost of rideshare trips, and another that modernizes how residents can carry their driverโs license.
A new state tax will now be applied to all rides booked through rideshare services like Uber and Lyft, as well as traditional taxi companies.ย
Itโs called the Transportation Commerce Tax, and itโs aimed at raising revenue for North Carolinaโs Highway Fund, which helps pay for road and bridge maintenance.
According to the North Carolina Department of Revenue (NCDOR), the tax is based on the type of ride:
- 1.5% for exclusive rides โ where the rider controls whoโs in the vehicle (like a solo Uber or taxi ride).
- 1% for shared rides, where passengers are grouped by the service provider.
โIf you control who’s in the car with you, that’s gonna be treated as an exclusive ride service,โ Andrew Furuseth, director of the Sales Tax Division at NCDOR, said. โThe shared ride service, which is at the 1% rate, is if the taxi company or the transportation network company is putting you in the car with somebody else.โ
The new tax will appear on customer receipts similar to how sales tax is listed during retail purchases.
Officials say rideshare and taxi drivers will not be responsible for collecting or remitting the tax โ thatโs handled by the companies themselves, unless the driver owns and operates their own business.
RELATED: What to know about North Carolinaโs new rideshare tax
Also beginning July 1, mobile driverโs licenses will be officially recognized as legal identification in North Carolina.
House Bill 199, signed by former Gov. Roy Cooper in July 2024, allows for digital versions of a driver’s license to be used in place of physical cards.ย
While the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles (NCDMV) has not yet opened registration for mobile IDs, the legal framework is now in place and implementation is still to come.
According to IDScan.net, most mobile IDs can be used for age-restricted venues, at the voting booth, at TSA and by law enforcement. But this does not apply to every state that issues these IDs.
When the law goes into effect, mobile licenses will be considered the legal equivalent of a physical driverโs license, offering a more convenient option for North Carolinians who prefer digital credentials.
Contact Destiny Richards at drichards5@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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