getting started

Are you new to the taxi industry or looking for information on how to get started ?  Click here for more info

Latest Photos

Taxi Driver's handbook

The following page indicates the rules governing taxi drivers and may also be of use to future taxi drivers. The Act respecting transportation services by taxi (RSQ, c. S-6.01) and the Taxi Transportation Regulation (c. S-6.01, r.2) are the main sources of the information presented here.

Intended simply as a guide, it does not in any way constitute a legal interpretation of legislation and regulations, nor does it release taxi drivers from the obligation of knowing and applying the standards governing taxi transportation services.

However, this page does not claim to be a complete guide to everything that Québec taxi drivers should know. It does not focus on essential knowledge of the Highway Safety Code, municipal traffic bylaws, the internal rules of taxi service associations, roads and key public places in taxi drivers’ work territory.

Finally, the rules described below have been issued by the gouvernement du Québec. Since certain powers have been transferred to the City of Montréal, as stipulated in the Act respecting transportation services by taxi, many of the rules described are not applicable in the territory under its authority.

Prerequisites for Obtaining a Taxi Driver’s Permit

Driver’s License

In order to obtain a taxi driver’s permit, which is required to drive a taxi, a person must hold a class 4C or higher (1, 2, 3, 4A or 4B) driver’s license.

To obtain a class 4C driver’s license, a person must:

  • Have a minimum of one year of driving experience as a holder of a class 5 driver’s license;
  • Comply with the standards for driver health;
  • Have the required knowledge to drive a taxi;
  • Pay $14 for the issuance of a new driver’s license.

State of health

The applicant’s state of health is verified by:

  • A vision test taken at an SAAQ (Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec) service center;
  • A checkup using the form prescribed by SAAQ.

The applicant must submit the form completed by the physician to SAAQ as soon as possible.

Required knowledge

A theoretical exam is used to test the knowledge required to drive a taxi. Applicants should make an appointment with SAAQ for this exam and be sure to bring:

  • their driver’s license;
  • if applicable, the SAAQ authorization letter concerning their health evaluation;
  • $10 to cover the examination fee.

The examination comprises 30 multiple-choice questions focusing on:

  • road signs;
  • the Highway Safety Code;
  • taxi driving principles and techniques.

The passing grade is 73%.

Applicants who fail the examination should make an appointment to retake it. A $10 fee applies. At least seven days must elapse between the date on which the examination was failed and the date on which it is retaken.

Before the exam, applicants are encouraged to carefully read the Driver’s Handbook and Driving a Passenger Vehicle, available at Publications du Québec partner bookstores.

Training

All taxi drivers residing in Québec must complete a 7-hour training course on taxi transportation for persons with disabilities and have in their possession, during their shift, a certificate attesting that they have successfully completed this training course.

This course is offered by three educational establishments, whose trainers offer training throughout Québec:

  • Centre de formation professionnelle pour l’industrie du taxi du Québec inc;
  • the Centre de formation de la Commission scolaire des Premières-Seigneuries;
  • the Centre de formation du transport routier de la Commission scolaire de la Rivière-du-Nord.

Applicants who want to work in Longueuil or Laval must complete a 60-hour training course. This training, which includes taxi transportation for persons with disabilities, also covers the provisions of the Act respecting transportation services by taxi and the Taxi Transportation Regulation, as well as on other common knowledge relating to the skills, abilities and behaviour required to drive a taxi. Taxi drivers who successfully complete this training receive a certificate that must remain in their possession during their shift.

This training course is offered by two educational establishments:

  • Centre de formation professionnelle pour l’industrie du taxi du Québec inc.; 
  • Centre de formation du transport routier de la Commission scolaire de la Rivière-du-Nord.

Applicants who want to work in the city of Québec must complete a 110-hour training course. This training consists of an initial 60-hour session on taxi transportation for persons with disabilities and also focuses on the provisions of the Act respecting transportation services by taxi and the Taxi Transportation Regulation, as well as on other common knowledge pertaining to skills, abilities and behaviour required to drive a taxi. Additionally, to work in the territory of the city of Québec, applicants must complete a 50-hour course dedicated to the area’s toponymy and geography. Taxi drivers who successfully complete this training receive a certificate that must remain in their possession during their shift.

This training is offered by:

  • Centre de formation de la Commission scolaire des Premières-Seigneuries.

Finally, applicants who wish to work in Montréal, must complete a 150-hour training course, including 90 hours on the area’s toponymy and geography.

This training is offered by:

  • Centre de formation professionnelle pour l’industrie du taxi du Québec inc.;
  • Centre de formation du transport routier de la Commission scolaire de la Rivière-du-Nord.

Taxi Driver’s Permit

In order to work as a taxi driver, you must possess a taxi driver’s permit.

To obtain this permit, applicants must comply with the abovementioned conditions, and:

  • be Canadian citizens or permanent residents within the meaning of the Immigration Act;
  • be 18 or over;
  • understand, speak and read French sufficiently to work as a taxi driver;
  • pass an examination on knowledge of the Act respecting transportation services by taxi and the Taxi Transportation Regulation. Applicants must not have failed this examination in at least the preceding month. The passing grade is 60% and the exam fee is $25;
  • pay a fee of $25. The cost of renewing the permit every two years is $50, and the permit is renewed at the same time as the driver’s license. Note that SAAQ charges an additional $20 for priority taxi driver permit renewal. However, this surcharge is waived if the taxi driver permit renewal application is accompanied by a $20 payment for priority processing of a plastic driver’s license issue, renewal or replacement;
  • not have received a taxi driver’s permit within three months of the end of permit suspension or revocation, unless a restricted permit was issued;
  • not have been convicted in the past five years of a criminal or indictable offense related to the operation of a taxi transportation service;
  • not have been indicted or convicted in the past five years of a criminal or indictable offence which is connected with the aptitudes and conduct required to drive a taxi (sexual misconduct, failure to provide the necessities of life, criminal operation of a motor vehicle, violent behavior, criminal negligence, fraud, theft, arson and drug- or narcotic-related offenses). For verification purposes, a search certificate must be submitted with the permit application (not in effect in February 2010).

Throughout Québec, except in Montréal, applicants may take the examination to obtain a taxi driver’s permit at the nearest SAAQ service center that issues such permits.

Applicants who wish to take the examination to obtain a taxi driver’s permit valid in Montréal must take an appointment with Bureau du taxi et du remorquage de la ville de Montréal at 514-280-6600. The examination fee is $100.

Taxi drivers have 30 days to notify the issuing authority of a change of name or address.

Employer Relations

Contract of Employment or Leasing Contract

Before driving a taxi in service and unless they own the taxi, drivers must sign a contract of employment with the holder of the taxi owner’s permit stipulating remuneration by salary or commission or a taxi leasing contract. Taxi drivers must keep a copy of the contract in the vehicle in their custody or control.

Notice to Taxi Owner

Taxi drivers must send by registered mail to each taxi owner for whom they work a copy of any document attesting to the modification, suspension or revocation of their taxi driver’s permit, driver’s license or class of permit authorizing taxi operation. They must do so upon receiving notification from the appropriate authority.

Prohibited Practice

A taxi driver is prohibited from transferring to a taxi owner the ownership of an automobile intended to be attached to the permit of that owner and from signing a contract with that same person by which the driver becomes the operator. This practice constitutes the leasing of a permit alone and runs contrary to the public interest.

Pre-departure Considerations

Required Documents

Before setting off at the beginning of their work period, taxi drivers must ensure that the taxi owner’s permit or a certificate in respect of this permit is in the glove compartment. This document must be available when a customer asks to see it.

Taxi drivers must also have in their possession their valid taxi driver’s permit, which must be displayed in such a way that it can be read by a customer sitting in the back seat. A law enforcement may ask to see the permit.

Taxi drivers must also have in their possession a copy of the leasing or employment contract that binds them to the owner of the taxi they are about to operate. A law enforcement may also ask to see this document.  The leasing or employement contract documents are available at Maxcomm Radio.

Pre-departure Inspection

Before departure, meaning each time the vehicle is put into service, taxi drivers must carry out a visual or auditory check, as applicable, of the following:

  • The brake fluid level, which should never be under the level indicated by the manufacturer or, if not indicated, any more than 10 mm under the filler neck opening.
  • The parking brake, which must be activated a number of times in order to check whether its cables are operating freely, its compliance with regard to vehicle immobilization and the activation of a dashboard indicator that lights up or turns off depending on whether the brake is applied or released.
  • The vehicle’s headlights, lights and signals, particularly the low-beam headlights, turn-signal lights, emergency flashers and parking lights, which must be operational and securely fastened at the points specified by the manufacturer, and their dashboard indicators, which must activate the electrical circuits at the intensity specified by the manufacturer.
  • The tires, which must not show any wear, cracks, cuts or tears exposing the rib or the steel belt, have any bulges or abnormal deformities, or be affected by materials or objects stuck in the tread or tire wall, which could cause a flat.
  • The tire valves, which must not be worn, damaged, scraped or cut and the projecting part of which must be long enough to allow tires to be filled easily and tire pressure to be checked.
  • The horn, which must work properly in keeping with the manufacturer’s standards.
  • The windshield wipers and windshield washer fluid, all components of which must be complete, properly adjusted and in good condition to ensure that they work effectively.
  • The rearview mirror, which must be adjustable vertically and horizontally, remain in the desired position, be the proper size, remain securely fastened, have no sharp edges and not be broken, cracked, tarnished or dull.
  • The domelight, which must be securely fastened and work properly.

Inspection Report

After performing an inspection and before setting off, a taxi driver must prepare a pre-departure inspection report that contains the following information:

  • the date and time of the inspection;
  • the taxi license plate number;
  • a description of the defects noted during the pre-departure inspection and any defects noted after departure;
  • the driver’s name and permit number;
  • the driver’s signature.

The inspection report, also known as "rapport avant départ", are available at Maxcomm Radio.  Taxi drivers are prohibited from having in their possession more than one report pertaining to the same inspection. The pre-departure inspection report must be kept in the taxi along with all inspection reports for the current month.

Steps to Take Following Observation of a Defect

Taxi drivers who are not the owner of the taxi they are driving must without delay inform the owner of any defect noted and give the owner a copy of the pre-departure inspection report concerned. The same applies to any defect noted after setting off.

When the defect noted is major, the taxi may not be operated and the repair must be made before putting the taxi back into service.

Customer Service

Types of Services

There are two types of taxi transportation services ─ private and public. Private transportation means that a trip is reserved solely for a customer and the persons that customer designates. A taxi owner’s permit authorizes only private transportation, except when:

  • the owner is bound by a contract with a municipal or supramunicipal authority;
  • the owner is bound by contract with any other person authorized by an order;
  • a bylaw stipulates routes and services that involve the service territory of the owner’s permit. The service must be provided in the places and according to the conditions stipulated.

Rules of Ethics and Cleanliness

Taxi drivers must:

  • be properly dressed in clean clothing;
  • afford customers the courtesy, comfort and safety required by their occupation;
  • help passengers get in or out of the vehicle safely when they obviously need assistance because of age, apparent state of health or a handicap;
  • ensure that the vehicle’s body and passenger compartment are clean;
  • ensure that equipment such as the taximeter and domelight operate properly.

Work Territory

Taxi drivers must work in the territory for which the taxi owner’s permit has been issued and are, therefore, authorized to undertake any trip starting in the territory covered by the taxi owner’s permit or any territory not served by a taxi permit. With some exceptions, taxi drivers are also authorized to make a trip that begins outside their territory and ends inside the territory. Drivers of wheelchair accessible vehicles are authorized to provide services to disabled persons in any area where no specially equipped taxi is available. Taxi drivers are also authorized to provide services throughout the territory covered by a taxi service intermediary that exclusively offers transportation services by means of wheelchair accessible taxis through a contract with taxi drivers.

Rules Governing Trip Distribution

When arriving at a public taxi station, taxi drivers must line up, taking the first available space and moving up one space when the space ahead becomes free. Except in the circumstances mentioned below, drivers who are not at the head of the line must turn down customers who ask for a ride and direct them to the first taxi in the lineup. By the same token, taxi drivers waiting at a public taxi station must turn down a trip called in by their taxi transportation service intermediary if a taxi with the same intermediary is ahead in line. A taxi transportation service intermediary is an organization that provides taxi owners and taxi drivers with advertising, call dispatching or other similar services.

Taxi drivers who are not first in line at a public taxi station may take on customers under any of the following exceptional circumstances:

  • The customer wishes to use a specific means of payment, for example, a credit card or electronic payment, and no other taxi driver ahead in line at the station accepts this type of payment.
  • The customer needs a special accessory, for example, a luggage rack, that no other taxi driver ahead in line at the station possesses.
    OR
  • The customer requires a wheelchair accessible vehicle.

These exceptions also apply when a taxi transportation service intermediary assigns a trip to a taxi driver when no taxi ahead in line from the same association is able to satisfy the specific request. The same is true when customers calling the association request the services of a driver with special qualifications or a vehicle with a specific wheelbase.

Once taxi drivers reach the head of the line, they may not refuse to make a trip requested by a customer unless the destination is over 50 km outside their authorized work territory or if one of the cases mentioned above applies.

Taxis at a public taxi station are ensured exclusivity of service within a 60 m radius. Taxi drivers may not take on customers who hail them if there is a public taxi station less than 60 m away and a taxi is parked there and available for service. If this is the case, taxi drivers must inform the customer that the taxi already waiting can meet his need for service. However, this prohibition does not apply if the customer is a disabled person in a wheelchair.

Domelight

Except in the cases specified in the regulation, taxis must be equipped with a domelight affixed to the front of the roof.

At night, taxi drivers available for service must turn on the domelight when driving in their work territory or parked in the first space at a public taxi station.

Trips

Unlike public transportation, private transportation ensures that the customer, whether alone or accompanied, is not forced to travel with other passengers.
After finding out the destination and ensuring they may make the trip, taxi drivers must:

  • turn off the domelight;
  • start the taximeter, if applicable;
  • take the most direct route to the destination, unless the customer indicates otherwise.

Rates

Commission des transports du Québec sets the rates for taxi transportation services, which must be displayed inside the taxicab. Obviously, taxi drivers may only request a price in keeping with the rate structure and rate applicable to the service provided. The rules below apply to rates and payment.

The taxi driver must only start the taximeter at the beginning of the trip. A taxi trip begins when the customer gets into the taxi or explicitly asks the driver to wait either verbally, through gestures or in another unmistakable manner.

Unless the customer indicates otherwise, the taxi driver must stop the taximeter as soon as the taxi arrives at the destination.

The foregoing rules do not apply when the use of the odometer is prescribed, in which case the taxi driver takes into account only the pickup charge and distance covered with the customer.

If the taximeter or odometer becomes defective during a trip, the taxi driver must agree with the customer on the fare, which must correspond to that normally calculated by taximeter or odometer, as the case may be. Note that the driver may not make any other trips until the taximeter or odometer has been repaired or replaced.

When a trip entails meals or accommodation for the taxi driver, reimbursement of these expenses must be agreed upon with the customer prior to departure. When a trip involves bridge crossing, or ferry or highway toll expenses, these fees are added to the amount for the trip.

When a trip requires the use of special equipment at the customer’s request, with the exception of equipment needed to compensate for a physical handicap, reimbursement of the related expenses must be agreed upon with the customer prior to departure.

Taxi drivers must give the customer exact change, but are not required to accept payment for a trip with a bill that is over $30 more than the fare. Drivers who choose to accept a bill for which they lack sufficient change must inform the customer and may charge for the cost of driving to a place where exact change can be obtained.

Taxi drivers must give each customer a receipt upon request that at least includes the following information:

  • the name of the taxi owner or taxi transportation service intermediary;
  • the driver’s name and signature;
  • the date ;the trip fare.

Service Contract

Taxi owners, taxi transportation service intermediaries or taxi drivers may sign a contract allowing them to agree upon a fare with customers that differs from that set by Commission des transports du Québec. The parties must agree freely to the contract and the customers’ consent must be entirely voluntary. Customers must not be put in a position where they have no choice if they wish to obtain transportation.

The contract must be written and include:

  • the names and signatures of the parties;
  • the name of the persons or group of persons to be transported;
  • the contract date and duration;
  • the fare determined or the method used to calculate it;
  • the trip starting point and destination.

Moreover, a copy of the contract must be kept in the vehicle or at the principal establishment of the taxi owner or taxi transportation service intermediary.

Documentations

> Taxi Driver's Hanbook PDF file (438kb)

Location / HOURS

4949 rue Molson
Montréal, QC
H1Y 3H6
Tel. : 514-280-6600
Fax : 514-280-6596

Monday-Friday : 8:30AM-4:00PM
Saturday-Sunday : CLOSED