A new applicant is defined as someone who has never been granted a Private Hire driver licence by Knowsley MBC Council or someone whose last KMBC licence has expired by more than one month. All new driver applications must be paid for, in full, when being submitted online.
Knowsley Council has adopted the National-Government-issued Statutory Guidance on Convictions via a “Fit & Proper Person Policy" . If you have convictions or relevant matters, you are warned to check the periods applied to particular offences thoroughly as, if you breach the policy, you will not be refunded if the Council follows the Policy and refuses a grant of licence. No conviction is ever “spent” for Private Hire driver applicants as a Rehabilitation of Offenders (Exceptions) Order applies- all offences must be disclosed. Any failure to disclose in itself can be a reason to refuse a licence.
1. Pre-application Requirements
Under no circumstances should anyone apply for a new driver licence until they have, in their possession, at minimum, available to upload at the time they apply:
- All pages of their full “Enhanced Level with excepted questions DBS Certificate” - This can be obtained via Apply to Taxi Plus for a DBS (enhanced) Certificate - (If you already have such a DBS Certificate and have subscribed to the DBS Update Service then the original DBS certificate must be uploaded),
- Proof of their “Right to Work and Reside” in the United Kingdom- This can be a current British or Southern Irish Passport or Birth Certificate or by obtaining a Home Office Right to Work Share code available via Prove your right to work to an employer: get a share code - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk),
- Both sides of your current DVLA photocard licence- (If you as yet only have a paper licence then that should be uploaded instead) - By applying for a driver licence you are consenting to an online DVLA record check to be undertaken by the Council at no extra cost to applicants prior to the grant of any licence,
- A current colour passport style photograph image of yourself - A jpeg or jpg format is preferred for reasons of size
- A satisfactory current Group II DVLA standard medical (Please see the guidance notes below as to what is required for medicals- Current HGV/PSV drivers may not need a further medical but will have their licences harmonised to the DVLA date of issue/ expiry)
- Current Fees as at November 2022
| Type of fee or certificate |
Amount |
| Medical Certificate (if required) |
Fees vary from one doctor to another (See section 4 above) |
| Certificate of Disclosure issued by the DBS |
£53 - payable to TaxiPlus |
| Issue fee |
£ 60 (one year licence)
£100 (three year licence) |
Apply for a licence
If you need help with making your application, watch the video below:
Documents as at section 1. 1-5 above must be uploaded during the application process. Names on all documents must match and be spelt in the same way. If there are any discrepancies with the names on the documents, then the application will not be able to be processed further until the documents have been rectified.
When you do apply for a licence as above and you have paid the fee you will receive a confirmation email which will show your unique application reference. This reference must be quoted.
2. Post Application Guidance
1. Submitting additional evidence post application
If you need to submit further evidence documents in support of your submitted application, which can be done via the Council Upload Evidence facility.
If you need help with uploading your evidence, watch the video below:
2. Obtaining the VRQ Level 2 in Transporting Passengers by Taxi & Private Hire
Once you have applied to Knowsley Council you will need to book a place with a vocational trainer. Any accredited VRQ provider can provide this course. Currently known active training providers include:
Unite Taxi Education
Marybone Youth Centre
Addison Way Liverpool L3 2EW
Tel: 0151 236 7645/ 4245
North-West Education and Training
100 Sefton Lane, Maghull L31 8BT
Tel: 01515264949 or [email protected]
The VRQ qualification may incur a cost or the training provider, depending on your own personal circumstances, they may be able to fund or part fund the qualification. The training provider will provide advice on this.
3. Producing a Certificate of Good Conduct
This applies only if you have lived outside of the UK for three months or more within the last five years.
You will also need to show the Council an original Certificate of Good Conduct from the country or countries you lived in. If this applies to you, an original certificate, and English translation, dated within the last six months, with a receipt from the embassy or consulate that issued it are required.
4. Group II Medical certificates- Guidance on validity
All new driver applicants must provide a medical certificate when they are applying for a new licence. The questionnaire can be downloaded from the link Medical Questionnaire
You may now only obtain the Group II standard medical from either:
- A General Practitioner at your registered surgery.
- Another General Practitioner who has full electronic access to a printout of your medical records before completing the assessment.
If you cannot access your own Doctor or your preferred Doctor, we are aware of one provider used by many Merseyside Councils namely Just Health Ltd Tel: 01282 936900
Medical questionnaires completed by any other General Practitioner without access to your medical records will be rejected.
If you suffer from any of the medical disorders outlined below, your application
could be refused - please see the DVLA Medical guidance for Group II licence rules.
- Neurological disorders - Epilepsy, blackouts, narcolepsy and sleep disorders, Multiple Sclerosis/Parkinson’s disease, cerebrovascular disease.
- Diabetes - IDD and NIDD.
- Psychiatric disorders - neuroses, psychosis, dementia.
- Alcohol or controlled drug misuse or dependence - this includes anyone who has committed a drink drive offence or has suffered seizures associated with alcohol misuse or dependence.
- Respiratory disorders - sleep apnoea syndrome, cough syncope.
- Visual disorders - poor vision, lack of peripheral vision, monocular vision.
5. Essential Skills Assessment
The ESA is currently suspended but new Private Hire Driver applicants can apply for a licence pending resumption of the ESA. When the ESA is resumed then any licensee who has been issued will be required to attend by appointment and undertake the assessment prior to any renewal or further licence grant.
6. Licence fees
The full fee is taken at the time of application. Any other fees later via the Online Payment Portal.
7. Receiving your new licence and badges
When the application is complete a new licence will be issued as a pdf via email. Your declared Private Hire Operator, will, if they accept such service, will also receive a copy of the licence. Only one Operator requires licensees to upload it themselves. The badges will be posted out to you.
Currently we are dealing with a significant number of applications and so cannot guarantee a specific response time to issuing a new licence. The closer that applicants follow the above processes then the more applications we will be able to process in the most efficient manner.
This file may not be suitable for users of assistive technology. You can request an accessible format by emailing [email protected]