Apply for or renew a vehicle licence (hackney carriage or private hire)

A vehicle licence is required for all hackney carriage (taxi) and private hire vehicles.

Vehicle licences are issued on a 12 month basis. We are only able to consider licences for vehicles that carry 8 passengers or less. Vehicles of 9 seats or over should apply on GOV.UK for a Public Service Vehicle Licence.

The council will only licence vehicles that meet the requirements set out in the hackney carriage policy (see section 4.3 of the Policy).

To apply for or renew a vehicle licence, you'll need to provide your:

• vehicle insurance documents that cover you for private hire or hackney carriage work (if covered by fleet insurance you must also provide the schedule)
• V5C log book or registration document with pages 1 and 2 in the name of the applicant or other proof of ownership of the vehicle
• vehicle lease or hire agreement (if applicable)
• basic criminal record disclosure issued within the last 3 months (if you're not currently a licensed driver) or your original DBS certificate if you're subscribed to the DBS Update Service
• operator declaration and vehicle photographs (if applying for a new executive vehicle)
• a valid MOT and compliance certificate, no more than 4 weeks old

You can book an MOT test with us when making your application or at a council approved testing centre.

You'll need a valid credit or debit card to pay for your application.

You'll need an online account to apply, renew or make changes to your licence. View our guidance on how to set up an account or make an application.

We are the controller for the personal information we use about you. We're committed to protecting your privacy when you use our services.

The law requires us to give you details about how we use and protect your information, view the taxi licensing privacy policy.

For information and support with the licensing process, you can contact taxi licensing.