Apply for a taxi vehicle licence
After receiving your completed application, we aim to process it within 10 working days. Please do not contact us to chase your application within this period. We usually correspond by email if there are any issues with your application.
If your application has been submitted correctly you should receive two emails. One will be a payment receipt. The other will be an acknowledgement of your application and will contain a reference number beginning PAF.
If you want to check the status of your application at any point, please sign in to your self-service account. Your application should be listed under My Cases.
To apply, you'll need:
- a vehicle under 7 years old - if the vehicle is older, it must pass an exceptional conditions check before submitting a vehicle application (find out more about booking an MOT for a taxi)
- insurance certificate (for private hire or public hire depending on licence)
- logbook (V5C)
Additionally, you'll need to present one of the following documents for a new hackney carriage to prove that it is wheelchair accessible:
- European Community Whole Vehicle Type Approval (ECWVTA)
- National Small Series Type Approval (NSSTA)
- Individual Vehicle Approval (IVA)
- vehicle logbook (V5C) showing the 'body type' as 'taxi'
Apply online for a vehicle licence
Please note: Incomplete applications will be refused. You must ensure that documents submitted are valid and up to date.
More about vehicle requirements
Please download our licence conditions for more information:
Book your compliance test or MOT
Your compliance must be completed at one of the depots listed below. Please note that from Monday 30 March 2026 your six monthly MOT must also be completed at one of the depots below.
Houghton Regis
Thorn Turn MOT Station
Grendall Lane
Houghton Regis
Bedfordshire
LU5 6GJ
Sandy
Sandy MOT Station
Beamish Close
Sandy
Bedfordshire
SG19 1SD
Book a test and find out more about our test centres
Vehicle plates
Vehicle plates will be issued once all checks are complete and the certificate of compliance has been received. Vehicle plates are posted to the driver’s home address unless a different address is provided to us.
Please allow 3 working days for your plates to be ordered once your vehicle has passed its compliance test.
Renewal plates are sent via Royal Mail 2nd class unless FedEx delivery is requested and paid for. All new vehicle plates are sent via FedEx.
You should allow 5 working days from the order date for plates sent by Royal Mail and 2 working days from the order date for plates sent by FedEx to arrive.
You are not permitted to work without valid plates being displayed on the vehicle in the prescribed manner.
Renewals
Renewal applications should be made no later than 10 working days prior to your licence's expiry date. However, we recommend that you submit your application around 1 month before your licence expires.
Once we've received your application, we'll authorise you to book a mechanical test at either the Thorn Turn or Sandy depots.
Renewal vehicles must pass their annual compliance inspection before the expiry date of their current licence.
Any vehicle not tested before its current licence expires will be dealt with as a new application.