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How to become a licensed driver

If you follow this simple procedure you can expect to become a licensed driver in St Helens in approximately four weeks.

• Contact us via email or by calling 01744 676770 to book an initial appointment. You will need to bring with you a bank card (to pay the DBS, DVLA Mandate and Application fee – total £106). Read the Taxi Licensing Policy for what you will need to become a licensed driver while you are waiting for your appointment.

• At this first appointment your DBS application will be completed and you will need to bring with you:

• Proof of identity/address (no more than three months old).

• A completed driver application form.

• Passport (if you don't have a passport, a Birth Certificate is required; if your passport was issued outside of the EU, a Certificate of Good Character from your embassy will be required).

• A DVLA mandate check code (this can be generated by visiting the DVLA website and inputting the following information: your DVLA driver's licence number, your National Insurance number and the postcode displayed on your licence).

• DVLA or European driver licence.

• National Insurance number (card or letter).

• Complete five-year address history.

• Passport-sized photograph.

• You will also be given a Group 2 medical certificate to be completed either by your GP or another medical practitioner who will have access to your medical records. You need to organise this appointment for your medical quickly to allow it to take place in this four-week period. The fee for the medical will be individually set by your medical practitioner.

• It is really important that you tell us at this first appointment if you have any convictions, cautions, health conditions or anything else we need to know. At this stage we will be able to advise you as to whether your application for a licence is likely to be successful.

• We will book you onto our next Essential Skills assessment (please note: should you fail this assessment, a retest will be required, which will slow down the application process).

• New applicants will now be given the option to commence work as a licensed driver before completing the VRQ training. You will need to complete the training and provide proof within the first six months of the licence or it will be revoked. You can view the training provider's website for more information. 

• As soon as you receive the DBS certificate (they are sent directly to you, not us), contact us to make your final appointment. Please note this certificate can be dated no more than two months before your final appointment. For more information, see the DBS privacy policy.

• You will also need to bring these documents with you to the final appointment:

  • Essential Skills pass letter.

  • Your VRQ pass certificate.

  • Your Group 2 medical certificate (the date this is signed should be no more than two months before your final appointment).

  • Your DBS certificate.

• At this final appointment, providing you have brought everything you need and there are no other unforeseen problems, then you will be issued with your one or three-year taxi driver licence.

Introduction of the option to request a one-year driver or operator licence

The applicant would have to request and state their case as to why they required a one-year driver or operator licence as the authority cannot issue them under general circumstances. This option is available to all of the trade and prices for these licences can be found on the fees page.