Applying for a Blue Badge
If you're disabled or have a health condition that affects your mobility, you can apply for a Blue Badge.
You can also apply for a badge if you care for a child with a health condition that affects their mobility.
Councils can charge for a blue badge. The most you can be charged is £10.
You can find more information from your local council about the Blue Badge scheme through GOV.UK.
If you get certain benefits you'll automatically be able to get a Blue Badge. The application will be straightforward.
You don't need to be able to drive to apply for a Blue Badge, unless you're applying because of problems with your arms.
Follow the advice on this page to renew your Blue Badge, too. You can’t use an expired badge, so make sure you apply for a new one as early as possible. You can ask your council when to submit your renewal.
You can only get a Blue Badge from your local council or at GOV.UK.
No one else can provide a genuine Blue Badge - if you think you’ve been scammed, you should report it.
Who can get a Blue Badge
You’re automatically eligible for a Blue Badge if you:
- are registered as blind
- get the higher rate of the mobility component of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) - check your decision letter if you're not sure
- get War Pensioners’ Mobility Supplement
- received a lump sum payment as part of the Armed Forces Compensation scheme (tariffs 1 to 8), and have been certified as having a permanent and substantial disability
If you get Personal Independence Payments (PIP)
You’re automatically eligible for a Blue Badge if you either:
- scored 8 points or more in the ‘moving around’ area of your PIP assessment
- scored 10 points in the ‘planning and following journeys’ area of your PIP assessment and were put in category ‘E’ - this means your stress, anxiety or other mental health issue stops you leaving the house
Check your PIP decision letter if you’re not sure.
If you're not automatically eligible
You can still get a badge if:
- you have long term problems walking or going to places - including problems caused by stress, anxiety or other mental health issues
- you have severe problems using both your arms
- you're applying on behalf of a child aged over 2 who has problems walking or going to places, or a child under 3 who needs to be close to a vehicle because of a health condition
Applying for a Blue Badge
You can apply for or renew your Blue Badge online on GOV.UK. Some councils also let you apply on a paper form - contact your local council to check.
You have to apply through your local council - your doctor can't help you get a Blue Badge. Your local council might also arrange an appointment to visit you - they'll let you know if you need this.
Filling in the application if you're not automatically eligible
If you're not automatically eligible you'll need to fill in an extra part of the application form to explain why you need a badge.
The application is more complicated if you're not automatically eligible - you can contact your nearest Citizens Advice for help.
If you or a child you care for has problems walking
If you’re applying on behalf of a child over 2 who has problems walking, fill in this section of the application form for them.
You should describe your condition in as much detail as you can. Your problems walking have to be caused by a substantial and long term disability.
Try to estimate how far you can walk without help. If you’re not sure, think about how many parked buses you could walk past before you'd start to feel pain or need a rest. One bus is about 11 metres long - so if you can only walk past half a bus, you can only walk about 5 metres. Write this on your form.
If you can’t work out the distance, write down how many steps you can take without help instead.
Tell your council how long it takes you to walk this distance, and how you walk - for example if you need to take small steps or shuffle.
Describe how walking makes you feel, for example if it causes you severe pain or makes you breathless, so that you have to sit down and rest.
You have severe problems using your arms
It’s quite difficult to get a Blue Badge because of problems with your arms.
You can’t get a badge because of problems with your arms if you only travel as a passenger.
You’ll need to:
- have severe problems with both of your arms
- explain why you need to drive regularly
- have severe problems using parking ticket machines or meters
When you apply, you should describe the problems you have with both of your arms. You’ll need to explain in detail why you have difficulty using parking ticket machines or meters.
You’ll also need to explain why you need to drive a car regularly, for example for your job or to take your children to school.
Your child is under 3 and needs to be close to a vehicle
When you apply, you'll need to explain that you have to be close to a vehicle to either:
- transport medical equipment
- get home or to a hospital quickly
If you carry around bulky equipment because of your child’s condition, you should list it. For example, if your child needs ventilators, suction machines, feed pumps or oxygen administration equipment.
Say how often this equipment is needed - for example every time you go out, or just some of the time.
If your child’s condition means they might need to go to hospital or home quickly, try to describe why in as much detail as you can. For example, you should explain if they have epilepsy or very unstable diabetes.
If you have a terminal illness
Your council will usually fast-track your application. You’ll need to send a copy of the medical form that shows you have a terminal illness – this is called form DS1500. You can get form DS1500 from your doctor or consultant.
Contact your local council and ask if you can fill in a paper form - tell them you're terminally ill when you call. You’ll still need to prove you’re eligible but your application might be dealt with quicker. They might give you instructions that will make the application easier, for example you might not need to answer all the questions on the form.
If you apply online, tick the box to say you have a terminal illness.
Documents you need
Before you apply, make sure you have:
- your National Insurance number or child reference number if you’re applying for a child
- the number, expiry date and local council on your current blue badge, if you have one
You’ll also need:
- your original decision letter from the Department of Work and Pensions - if you're automatically eligible for a badge
- details of your medical condition - if you’re not automatically eligible for a badge
- proof of identification, for example a birth or marriage certificate, passport or driving licence
- a Council Tax bill from the last 3 months to prove your address - or you can give your local council permission to check their records
- a photograph of the person the badge is for - it has to be taken with a digital camera
If you’re applying by post
Send copies of your documents rather than originals, in case your application gets lost in the post.
You need to get the copy of your proof of identification checked by a professional person, like a solicitor - this is called ‘certifying a document’. Some professional people might charge to certify a document.
They should sign the copy and write on it:
- the words ‘This copy is a true likeness of the original’
- their name, address and occupation
- the date
Find out more about how to certify a document on GOV.UK.
What happens after you've applied
It could take a long time for your application to be processed. You should contact your council if you haven’t heard back within 6-8 weeks.
You might be asked to do a mobility assessment. A health professional will look at your ability to carry out a range of mobility activities. They'll tell your council whether they think your health condition or disability limits your ability to move around enough for you to need a badge.
You also might be asked to send in extra information or speak to a member of the council.
Your council will tell you in writing if this is the case.
If you’re refused a Blue Badge, you can ask your council to reconsider their decision. The decision letter from the council will tell you how to ask for a review and what the time limit is.
Renewing your Blue Badge
You’ll need to renew your badge after 3 years. You'll also have to re-apply for a badge if you stop getting the benefit your badge is linked to.
You can renew your Blue Badge online on GOV.UK. Some councils also let you renew your Blue Badge using a paper form - contact your local council to check.
You must give your Blue Badge back to your council if you no longer need it, for example if your condition improves. You could be fined up to £1,000 if you don’t.