Driver's licence

You will need a hackney carriage (taxi) or private hire (minicab) driver's licence before you can operate as a driver in Rushmoor.

Update on applying for or renewing your driver's licence during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic

New applications

Due to the Coronavirus outbreak and considering the advice from government, we are not currently accepting new applicants for a hackney carriage and/or a private hire driver's licence.

When we can accept new applications again, we will contact you to arrange an appointment. For us to do that, please email us using the contact details on this pages. You will need to include your name, a contact phone number and details of the type of licence you would like to apply for.

In the meantime, you can read though what is needed for a licence in the information below. This is also a good time to prepare for the local area knowledge, highway code, literacy and numeracy tests.

Renewal of your licence

If you already have a licence and it is due for renewal, we will try to contact you soon to go through our licence renewal arrangements with you. If you do not hear from us, and your renewal date is approaching, please contact us, as you are responsible for renewing your licence.

Please contact us using the details on this page if you have any questions.

Information about the licence

You will need to bring the following with you when you attend an appointment:

• Valid passport (if you do not have one, please bring your original birth certificate)
• A statement of good conduct from any country other than the UK that you have lived in for more than six months since the age of ten
• An up-to-date, original and valid driving licence
• A utility bill or bank statement dated within the last three months
• A  Taxi driver medical application form [331kb] completed by your GP
• The relevant Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) fee. Details of our fees are available on our Taxi licence fees page.  Read through our  Policy on Handling DBS Disclosure Information [70kb].  If we grant your licence you will also need to pay the application fee.
• Proof of your National Insurance number, like a  payslip or HM Revenue and Customs letter
• A qualification certificate showing that your literacy and numeracy skills meet the equivalent of Entry Level One literacy and Entry Level Two numeracy initial assessments. If you do not have a qualification certificate, you will have the chance to take a test
• Proof that you have passed a driving standards and proficiency assessment for driving a hackney carriage/private hire vehicle and the additional wheelchair element (where relevant). This must be dated within six months of your appointment with us. The Blue Lamp Trust is an approved supplier of both the driving assessment and wheelchair element
• Proof that you have attended and passed a classroom-based taxi safeguarding course, which must be dated within six months of your appointment with us. The Blue Lamp Trust is an approved supplier of the training
• Evidence of your immigration and asylum status, and proof of your right to work in the UK (if not an EU national)
• If you are applying for a private hire driver's licence, confirmation of the operator that you will be working for

You will normally also need to:

• Be at least 18 years old
• Have held a full driving licence for at least 12 months
• Meet the DVLA Group Two medical standards
• Take a knowledge test based on the Highway Code and local familiarity with locations in and around Rushmoor. You can take a sample knowledge test online. You will have to pay a fee for each attempt at the tests. We will normally allow you to attempt these tests three times
• Take a literacy and numeracy test, if you have not provided an equivalent qualification certificate to show that you meet the required standard. You will have to pay a fee for each attempt at the tests. We will normally allow you you to attempt the numeracy test three times, but the literacy test only once
• Go through a Disclosure and Barring Service check (this generally takes a minimum of four weeks)
• Provide a public liability insurance certificate (showing cover to at least £5 million) once all other requirements are met
• Provide access to an online DVLA check of your driving licence record

Please note that this is not a comprehensive list of requirements and in some cases, you may have to provide additional information.

You should allow at least 28 days for us to process your application from the initial appointment. However, as we rely on third parties and you passing the knowledge tests, it may take significantly longer.

How to renew your licence

Your licence normally lasts for three years. We will try to contact you before your renewal date, but it is your responsibility to make sure you apply to renew your licence before your current licence expires.

On renewal every three years, you will have to attend the council offices and sit and pass a taxi safeguarding e-learning module before renewing your licence. You will need to pass the training in the three months before your renewal date. There will be a charge for attending.