Swindon taxi and private-hire licensing

This guide publishes only fields supported by the cited official sources. Anything unresolved is visibly withheld rather than inferred.

RESEARCHED AUTHORITY

Swindon

Swindon Borough Council · Sources checked 13 September 2026

Driver licensing
Official route/source found

Three-year driver licence. Submit DBS certificate/update reference, medical, photograph and training/assessment certificates, then attend right-to-work appointment.

Vehicle licensing
Official route/source found

Vehicle plates last one year. Applicants upload V5 or ownership proof, suitable public/private-hire insurance, vehicle details and payment. Basic DBS is required unless the stated existing-licensee enhanced-DBS exemption applies. Once the application is validated, the council authorises testing at a listed approved centre; upload the signed pass certificate using the contact-licensing form. The page gives 17–25 days for plate issue and requires compliance with the separately linked current policy.

Operator licensing
Official route/source found

New operator licences run for five years. The application requires a driver list, ex-offenders, safeguarding, customer-service/complaints and training policies, door-sign artwork, DBS certificate and payment. Renewal additionally needs the renewal reference, HMRC tax-check code and business-insurance certificate; existing council licence holders already requiring Enhanced DBS need not provide another Basic disclosure. Published five-year renewal fees are £1,925 for 1–9 vehicles, £2,200 for 10–19, £2,475 for 20, plus £60.50 per extra ten vehicles above 20. Submit complete documents through the council's linked application service; missing documents delay processing.

Licensing fees
Official route/source found

New driver application £264; competency and compliance test £80. Additional provider fees and vehicle/operator fees not extracted.

Taxi tariff
Official route/source found

Effective 00:01 on 1 October 2024. Day/night/festive flags £5.50/£6.50/£7.50 include 368.8m or 79.3s; fare-threshold changes alter subsequent distance/time pulses. Combined time-or-distance logic required, not distance plus all journey time.

Mandatory qualifications
Official route/source found

Competency/compliance test, driving/skills assessment and Trust2Ride safeguarding training required before application.

Withheld or still needing confirmation
  • Combined meter engine needed; threshold wording says exceeds, not reaches.
  • Vehicle and operator conditions and complete fees outstanding.
  • PDF visually unchecked.
  • Preserve previously verified fields. New-application page labels its displayed fees as renewal fees; amounts are therefore described only as renewal charges. Full policy recordkeeping and DBS recency requirements remain to be added.
  • Age/emissions acceptance limits and exact current fees not extracted; documentary requirements are not an exhaustive technical specification.
  • Preserve prior verified fields.

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