PSV Operator Licensing

Who needs a PSV Operators Licence?

You will need a Public Service Vehicle operator’s licence if your vehicle is designed or adapted to carry nine or more passengers and payment is taken for carrying passengers. This is known as hire or reward.
Hire or reward is when an operator or owner driver takes payment which gives a passenger a right to be carried on the vehicle regardless of whether a profit is made or not.
The payment may be made by the passenger, or on the passenger’s behalf. It may be (a) a direct payment (e.g. a fare) or (b) an indirect payment (this could be an exchange for services such as a membership subscription to a club, payment for a bed in a hotel, school fees or payment for concert tickets where travel is included; the payment does not have to be money and the right to travel does not need to be taken up).

If the vehicle is designed or adapted to carry nine or more passengers and does so for hire or reward it is a public service vehicle. If your vehicle has eight passenger seats or less but you wish to carry passengers at separate fares in the course of a business you will need a PSV operator’s licence.

What type of licence do I need?

There are four types of licence:

A standard licence – for national and international operations.
A standard licence – for national operations only.
A restricted licence – for small operations only.
A special restricted licence – for holders of taxi licences

How do I apply for a licence?

You can get an application form (PSV 421) by downloading it from www.businesslink.gov.uk . You should send the form at least nine weeks before the day on which you want your licence to start. However, the traffic commissioner will not grant your licence until satisfied that you have provided sufficient evidence that you will meet the requirements set out below. This may take more than nine weeks. Therefore you are advised not to buy, hire or lease vehicles or any special equipment, and not to enter into any contract to run services, until you know that your licence has been granted.

What if I don't apply for a licence and carry on operating a service which requires a PSV operators licence?

You risk the vehicle being seized and impounded by VOSA and not being able to operate a service for hire and reward again. Members can access more information on impounding from the link below:

Impounding of illegally operated minibuses