Become a taxi driver: specifics and training

Choosing a career as a taxi driver is no easy decision and shouldn’t be taken lightly because there are a number of downsides to the job.

Downsides to a career as a taxi driver

With irregular hours, the need for constant concentration and long days sat in the same position (even if by law you are required to take breaks) the job isn’t as easy as it might at first appear. Nevertheless it is no easy task to become a taxi driver. The profession is heavily and strictly regulated (there is even a special ‘taxi police’ who check taxi driver licenses amongst other things). There are minimum hours of training required and certain conditions must be met in order to become a professional taxi driver and hold a taxi license.

Training required to become a taxi driver

There are around thirty schools for the Paris region alone where you can train to become a taxi driver. Here candidates apply to obtain a CCPT, that is to say a certificate that is the French equivalent of a taxi driver license. This certificate is essential to operating as a taxi driver and is issued by the official governing body. The applicants follow a course of between 200 to 420 hours, over three or six months, in relation to the working hours of the applicant. Before becoming a taxi driver the students must successfully pass a theory exam as well as a practical exam. The cost of the training and exams together comes to, on average, around 2000 euros.

Becoming a taxi driver: aspects to the training

In order to become a taxi driver there are certain disciplines that must be mastered:

• Management
• National and regional regulations
• Security
• French language (to a sufficient level)

There are also certain other taxi driver requirements such as the ability to memorise addresses and roads and a minimum knowledge of places and monuments. However the challenge doesn’t stop there, you can’t apply to enter the profession unless you fulfil the requirements of the law number 95-66 written on the 20th January 1995.

Requirements to become a taxi driver

The bare minimum required is to have held a driving license B for at least three years. The license must be clean, meaning that it has never been revoked for drunken driving or other infringements of the law. If all the requirements are met only then will a professional operating card be issued that proves you are a licensed taxi driver and permitted to operate according to the chosen status that goes with it.

The different taxi driver statuses

There are three categories of taxi driver: employees working for a company who represent around 17% of the profession, the rental operators who represent around 27% and are called this because they hire their vehicles and the finally the artisans at 56%. Those operating using a rental vehicle usually have minimum financial outlay, as their only expenditure will have been to acquire the taxi driver license, they often hold an intermediary artisan status.

You can also read our article about parisian taxis : what are the specificities?

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