RESEARCHED AUTHORITY
Boston
Boston Borough Council · Sources checked 12 September 2026
- Driver licensing
- Official route/source found
Potential applicants first request and read Boston's Driver Enquiry Pack, then attend an appointment at the Municipal Buildings where their driving licence is checked and they take the comprehension test. Successful applicants receive the application pack. The council issues private-hire driver badges and dual Hackney Carriage/private-hire badges; the driver and vehicle licences must be issued by the same authority.
- Vehicle licensing
- Official route/source found
A Hackney Carriage or private-hire vehicle application requires the council form, a Boston-area MOT certificate, the appropriate public- or private-hire insurance, and a taximeter calibration certificate where applicable. Licensed vehicles are MOT tested every six months and the vehicle licence renews annually. Hackney Carriages need the council plate, roof and for-hire signs, and a tested and sealed meter; private-hire vehicles must be pre-booked through their operator.
- Operator licensing
- Official route/source found
Anyone operating private-hire vehicles must obtain a Boston private-hire operator licence. It lasts five years and the operating premises must be within the borough. Applicants who do not already hold a Boston Hackney Carriage/private-hire driver badge must supply a current Basic Disclosure at their own expense; the council also applies its fit-and-proper and immigration-status checks.
- Licensing fees
- Official route/source found
Full Council approved the 2026/27 fee schedule on 2 March 2026, but the schedule does not print an exact commencement date. A new Hackney Carriage/private-hire driver licence is £250.30 and renewal £193.50. A new or renewed Hackney Carriage or private-hire vehicle licence is £191.30. A new five-year private-hire operator licence is £273.30, and the driver knowledge test is £31.70. These are council charges and should not be combined with external medical, DBS or training costs.
- Taxi tariff
- Official route/source found
The council states that it regulates maximum hackney-carriage fares and links a current example tariff sheet, but its numeric current sheet was not retrievable in this review. A 2026 committee item recommends changes including 30p/45p/60p subsequent 190-yard increments for Tariffs 1/2/3, Tariff 2 from 21:00, and maximum booking fee £10. These are a proposal pending the council's decision/effective-date evidence and must not replace the current tariff.
- Mandatory qualifications
- Official route/source found
First-time drivers must pass Boston's English-reading, receipt-writing and basic-mathematics comprehension test, provide Enhanced DBS and DVLA checks, meet the DVLA Group 2 medical standard, complete the council's two safeguarding certificates, and evidence identity, address, right to work and any required overseas good-conduct check. A private-hire badge may be issued first; changing to the dual Hackney Carriage/private-hire badge requires the separate law, route and local-places knowledge test.
Withheld or still needing confirmation
- The approved 2026/27 fee schedule does not state its exact commencement date; none is inferred.
- The 2026 proposed fare variation has only reached committee recommendation and is scheduled for Cabinet decision on 30 September 2026; none of its proposed figures are promoted as current.
- The current Hackney Carriage fare card applies only to Hackney Carriages, not private-hire bookings.
- Medical, DBS, training and any other third-party charges are not treated as council licence fees.
- Retrieve and extract the current tariff-sheet download linked by the council.
- Verify whether the 2026 recommended variation was approved and obtain its operative date before publication as current.