High-Volume For-Hire Services

• Submit a list of bases through which the HVFHS will dispatch trips;
• Pay the licensing fee;
• Submit a business plan, which includes the business’s past and anticipated vehicle count, trip volume, service areas, and compliance with the TLC’s accessibility requirements;
• Submit an analysis of the impact of the business on traffic congestion, local transportation, and noise;
• Provide a description of all deductions it proposes to charge for-hire vehicle owners or drivers as well as estimates of gross hourly earnings of drivers;
• Provide detailed trip and revenue data on an ongoing basis.

• High-Volume For-Hire Service Application and Checklist (PDF)
• Appendices for High-Volume For-Hire Service Application (xls)

For guidance on using Taxi Zones in Application Appendix data submission, find maps and tables in Trip Record Data.

The initial HVFHS license application period has begun. All applicable businesses must file a HVFHS license application by April 17, 2019.

Email the completed application and all required documents, in PDF format, to businessmr@tlc.nyc.gov. TLC will review your submissions electronically; once TLC confirms your application is complete, you will be contacted to make an appointment to submit licensing fees in person. Once you have submitted your application, schedule a fingerprinting appointment. Read Identogo - Fingerprint Request (PDF).

High-Volume For-Hire Services (HVFHS) are required to regularly submit data to TLC via TLC-hosted SFTP. For-Hire Services are required to submit 5-10 different files. For each file, the HVFHS should submit all records for all constituent FHV bases. Do not submit different files for each FHV base. Data submissions by For-Hire Services also fulfill the data submission requirements for the For-Hire Service’s constituent FHV bases.

• Download HVFHS Data Specifications (xls)

Submission frequency and naming convention for each file are as follows:

Businesses that currently dispatch or plan to dispatch more than 10,000 FHV trips in New York City per day under a single brand, trade, or operating name via FHV bases must apply for the High-Volume For-Hire Service license.

This license is required for all companies that meet the eligibility standards in the approved rules, read Notice of Public Hearing and Opportunity to Comment on Proposed Rules (PDF) and the related local law read Local Law of The City of New York 2018 No. 149 (PDF).

The HVFHS license is valid for two years from approval.

No. The local law does not remove existing base requirements or change current dispatch requirements. All vehicles dispatched using the HVFHS software must be affiliated to a TLC-licensed base or they cannot be dispatched. The HVFHS license is required for all businesses who meet the standards set in the law for the number of dispatches done per day. If an HVFHS licensee also owns or operates a base then they are required to maintain their base license in good standing, as well, to continue dispatching TLC-licensed vehicles.

It is a violation of TLC rules to dispatch any trip other than through a TLC-licensed FHV base. This rule applies to all HVFHS licensees.

The general outline of the requirements can be found in the Local Law of The City of New York 2018 No. 149 (PDF) and  Notice of Public Hearing and Opportunity to Comment on Proposed Rules (PDF).

TLC will ask for each applicant’s business plan, an analysis of their environmental and transit impacts on the city, a mitigation plan for negative impacts, and additional data related to fares, driver income, and other aspects of operation.

The TLC application will contain more specifics for each of these components. When the application is available, it will appear on the TLC website with application deadlines provided. TLC will also directly contact businesses that we believe will need to apply for the new HVFHS license.

The license application costs $380,000 for a two-year license for each High-Volume For-Hire Service application. This fee will not be refunded if the Commission denies the application.

License renewals take place every two years. A renewing applicant must file a completed application for renewal at least 60 days before the expiration date of the license.