The professional driving permit, explained
If you are paid to drive, the ordinary driving licence is not enough. A truck driver, a taxi driver, a courier in a bakkie over 3.5 tons, a bus driver and a fuel tanker driver each need a professional driving permit, the PrDP, on top of the licence. It is a card that says you are old enough, medically fit and not disqualified by a recent conviction. Here is the whole thing from the road traffic regulations and government’s own service page.
Who must have one
Regulation 115 of the National Road Traffic Regulations lists the drivers who need a professional driving permit. Government summarises it in one line: to drive on a public road transporting goods, dangerous goods or passengers for an income, you must have a PrDP. In practice that means:
- Category G, goods: a goods vehicle with a gross vehicle mass over 3 500 kg. Panel vans, delivery trucks, rigid and articulated trucks, and any vehicle carrying goods for hire. Minimum age 18.
- Category P, passengers: a bus or minibus designed to carry twelve or more people, and any vehicle carrying passengers for reward, which covers minibus taxis, metered taxis, e-hailing cars, scholar and staff transport. Minimum age 21.
- Category D, dangerous goods: fuel, gas, chemicals and other hazardous loads as defined in the Act. Minimum age 25, and a dangerous goods training certificate.
You apply for each category you need, and each needs the driving licence for that class of vehicle first. A code B licence does not become a truck licence because a PrDP is stapled to it.
What you need
- Identity document or valid South African passport
- Your valid driving licence for the vehicle class
- Four identical black-and-white photographs
- A medical certificate on the prescribed form, not older than two months
- Proof of address, a utility bill or a letter from the ward councillor
- A training certificate where the category requires it, which is the case for dangerous goods
- Fingerprints, taken at the centre for the SAPS criminal record check
- The prescribed fee, which each province sets in its own tariff; ask the centre
How it works, step by step
- Get the medical done first. The certificate expires after two months, so book it, then book the application.
- Apply at a Driving Licence Testing Centre, or online through NaTIS if you live in Gauteng, with the documents above.
- Fingerprints and fee. The prints go to SAPS for the criminal record check that regulation 117 requires.
- Wait. Government’s stated maximum is 12 weeks. Most of it is the criminal record check.
- Collect the card and carry it. A roadblock asks for licence and PrDP together. It lasts 24 months; start the renewal at least three months before expiry so there is no gap in which you cannot legally work.
What stops you getting one
Regulation 117 disqualifies an applicant who, in the five years before the application, was convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, of reckless or negligent driving, or of an offence involving violence, and it does not matter which vehicle or where. A suspended or cancelled licence, or a failed medical, also stops the permit. A conviction older than five years does not.
What actually goes wrong
- A medical certificate that has expired by the time the application is lodged. Two months is short.
- Renewing late. With a 12-week processing ceiling, a driver who applies the month the card expires spends weeks unable to work legally.
- The wrong licence class underneath. A PrDP does not upgrade a code B to a code C1 or EC. The licence comes first.
- Assuming the employer holds it. The permit is personal to the driver and the fine at a roadblock is the driver’s.
- A dangerous goods load without the D category. A G permit does not cover fuel or gas, and the training certificate is a separate requirement.
Frequently asked questions
Who needs a professional driving permit?
Anyone who drives on a public road transporting goods, dangerous goods or passengers for an income. That is the government’s own wording. In practice: drivers of goods vehicles over 3 500 kg, of buses and minibuses carrying twelve or more people, of any vehicle carrying paying passengers including taxis and e-hailing cars, and of vehicles carrying dangerous goods.
What are the categories and ages?
Category G for goods, from age 18. Category P for passengers, from age 21. Category D for dangerous goods, from age 25. Each category has its own minimum age and you must already hold a driving licence for the class of vehicle.
What documents do I need?
Your identity document or valid South African passport, your valid driving licence for the vehicle class, four identical black-and-white photographs, a medical certificate not older than two months, proof of address, a training certificate where the category requires it, and the fee. Your fingerprints are taken for the SAPS criminal record check.
Where do I apply and how long does it take?
At a Driving Licence Testing Centre; Gauteng residents apply online through NaTIS. Government’s stated maximum processing time is 12 weeks, because the criminal record check goes through SAPS. Apply for renewal well before the current permit expires.
How long is a PrDP valid?
24 months. It is renewed on the same terms, with a fresh medical certificate and a fresh criminal record check each time.
What stops me getting one?
Regulation 117 of the National Road Traffic Regulations disqualifies an applicant convicted in the previous five years of driving under the influence, reckless or negligent driving, or an offence involving violence, and anyone whose licence is suspended or who fails the medical.
Proof of address in someone else’s name?
The testing centre wants proof of where you live. If the account is in a family member’s name, the free affidavit builder produces the proof-of-residence affidavit in the correct form.
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Sources: National Road Traffic Act 93 of 1996 and the National Road Traffic Regulations, 2000, regulations 115 to 117; the South African Government service page “Apply for a professional driving permit”. Fees are set provincially; confirm at your testing centre. This is information, not legal advice.