For Hire Vehicles - TLC

Taxi & Limousine Commission


Yellow CabGreen CabFor-Hire Vehicle BaseParatransit and Commuter Van Authority

Livery Base
Black Car Base
Luxury Limousine Base
High Volume For-Hire Services
In-Vehicle Advertising Technology

Livery Base

Black Car Base

Luxury Limousine Base

High Volume For-Hire Services

In-Vehicle Advertising Technology


For-Hire Vehicle Bases

For-Hire Vehicles (FHVs) provide pre-arranged transportation throughout New York City. For-Hire trips are arranged through TLC licensed bases. FHV bases accept trip requests from passengers, dispatch TLC licensed drivers in TLC licensed vehicles, and are responsible for collecting and paying taxes, as well as providing driver benefits.

There are four (4) classes of FHV service, based on base and vehicle type, available in New York City. Read below for general information about each base type. Use the links on the left for specific information about applying for, renewing, and changing contact information or structure of an existing TLC base license.

Livery Base

Livery base stations are TLC licensed bases that dispatch livery vehicles, also known as community cars. Livery bases dispatch livery vehicles on a pre-arranged basis, where such vehicles are designed to carry five (5) or fewer passengers, and passengers are charged for service based on flat rate, mileage, or zones. Select the Livery Base link on the left side of the screen to learn more about applying for and renewing a Livery base license.

Black Car Base

Black Car bases, also known as central dispatch facilities, are TLC licensed bases that dispatch all trips on a pre-arranged basis. More than ninety percent (90%) of each base’s business is on a payment basis other than direct cash payment by passengers, and all of the base’s vehicles are owned by franchisees of the base or are members of a cooperative that operates the base. Select the Black Car Base link on the left side of the screen to learn more about applying for and renewing a Black Car base license.

Luxury Limousine Base

Luxury limousine bases are TLC licensed bases that dispatch all trips on a pre-arranged basis, where the luxury limousine base’s vehicles have a seating capacity of twenty (20) or fewer passengers. More than ninety percent (90%) of a luxury limousine base’s business must be on a payment basis other than direct cash payment by passengers; and passengers are charged for “garage to garage” service on the basis of flat rate, time or mileage. Garage to garage service means payment for service starting from the driver’s point of origin (garage or base), continuing through the passenger drop off, until the driver returns to the garage or base. Select the Luxury Limousine Base link on the left to learn more about applying for and renewing a Luxury Limousine base license.

High Volume For-Hire Service Base

High Volume For-Hire Service (HVFHS) is a recently created category of TLC licensed FHV base, used only for bases that dispatch more than ten thousand (10,000) trips per day. For more information about HVFHS base licenses, including applying for and renewing an HVFHS base license, select the High Volume For-Hire Service link on the left of the screen.