How to Become an Uber Driver in Melbourne, Step by Step

To become an Uber driver in Melbourne you need five things in place: a full Australian or New Zealand licence held for at least six months, driver accreditation from Safe Transport Victoria, an ABN with GST registration, an eligible car that is registered for passenger work, and an approved account in the Uber Driver app. You must also be at least 21. This guide sets out how to become an Uber driver in Melbourne in the order that wastes the least time, starting with the step that takes longest.

Rules change, so every requirement below comes from the official page listed in the sources at the end. We checked each one on 3 October 2026.

What do you need before you apply to drive with Uber in Melbourne?

Three sets of rules sit on top of each other: Uber's own driver and vehicle rules, the Victorian rules for commercial passenger vehicles, and the tax rules for ride-sourcing. Here they are in one table.

Step 1: check your licence and driving history

Uber's Australian requirements ask for an unrestricted, full Australian or New Zealand driver licence held for at least six months, and drivers in Victoria must be at least 21. Red and green P-plates are provisional licences, so P-platers can't drive Uber passengers however long they have been driving. The six months counts from the day your full licence was issued, not from the day you first got your Ps.

Victoria's accreditation rules line up with Uber's, with one extra detail. Safe Transport Victoria requires you to hold a valid Victorian full licence, and to have held a full licence in an Australian state or territory or New Zealand for at least six months. If you have moved here from interstate or overseas, getting your Victorian licence comes first.

Accreditation also includes a driving history check, so look at your own record before you apply. Recent suspensions or a run of demerit points are better known now than discovered halfway through an application.

If you are on P-plates today, there is still useful work while you wait. Uber accepts a green P2 licence for car deliveries with Uber Eats in Victoria, but not a red P1, so check Uber's delivery requirements for your licence type. We also rent to P-platers for private use, so you can get used to Melbourne's roads before your full licence arrives.

Step 2: get driver accreditation with Safe Transport Victoria

Every commercial passenger vehicle driver in Victoria needs driver accreditation, and that includes rideshare drivers. It is issued by Safe Transport Victoria, the regulator that replaced Commercial Passenger Vehicles Victoria (CPVV). Some app pages and forum posts still use the old name; it is the same accreditation.

According to the Victorian listing on the government's business licence register, to be accredited you must:

• hold a valid Victorian full driver licence
• have held a full licence in an Australian state or territory, or New Zealand, for at least six months
• be medically fit to drive a commercial passenger vehicle
• pass a national criminal history check
• pass a driving history check
• submit the application forms and pay the fees.

You apply through the Safe Transport Victoria User Portal. The medical side is assessed against the national driver medical standards, Assessing Fitness to Drive. Get your medical done early, so the application isn't sitting in a queue waiting for one form.

Accreditation is issued to you as a driver, not to a car, so it stays with you if you change cars. DiDi's Melbourne driver page asks for the same Driver Accreditation certificate, so one application covers you for both apps.

Step 3: choose a car that meets Uber's Melbourne vehicle rules

For UberX in Victoria, Uber says the car must:

• be 15 years old or less, measured by year of manufacture
• have 4 doors and seat 4 to 7 passengers plus the driver
• have a 5-star ANCAP safety rating, or fall under Uber's vehicle exemption policy
• be registered in Victoria and registered as a commercial passenger vehicle
• pass an inspection from an approved provider
• be in excellent working condition and free from cosmetic damage
• carry no commercial branding, such as wraps or graphics, larger than 20 cm by 20 cm.

UberX also excludes ex-taxi, ex-driving school, government, branded and rebuilt vehicles. Because age is measured by year of manufacture, the cut-off moves every January. A car built in 2011 meets the 15-year rule during 2026 but not in 2027, so check the build year against how long you plan to drive.

Uber also publishes a list of eligible models for Melbourne, showing which tiers each model can work in. Treat it as a guide: Uber says a listed model must still meet every requirement for your area.

The car brings its own paperwork: commercial passenger vehicle registration, an inspection and insurance that names you. If you own the car, all of that is yours to arrange. If you rent, ask the rental company exactly which parts it handles. With us, rideshare use is allowed only on vehicles approved for it, and you hold your own accreditation and platform registration. Tell us the car is for rideshare when you request it, and we'll confirm which cars are approved. Our guide to renting a car for Uber in Dandenong covers the rental side in more detail.

Fuel is the other thing to weigh. Rideshare is mostly stop-start city driving, which is where a petrol-electric hybrid saves most. The federal Green Vehicle Guide rates a current Corolla Hybrid hatch at 3.8 L/100 km on its urban test, against 7.5 for a 2.0-litre petrol Corolla hatch. Our hybrid car rentals show weekly rent and bond on every listing.

Step 4: ABN, GST and insurance before your first trip

For GST, the ATO treats ride-sourcing as taxi travel. The usual rule that you register once your GST turnover reaches $75,000 doesn't apply. You must be registered for GST before your first trip, whatever you earn, and you need an ABN to register. Penalties and interest may apply if you don't.

The ATO's instructions are specific:

• You can apply for an ABN and register for GST at the same time online, or a registered tax or BAS agent can do it for you.
• Describe the business as "taxi ride sourcing" and choose "taxi driver (except owner/operator)" or "taxi cab service".
• Register from the date you intend to start, and choose monthly or quarterly GST reporting. Annual reporting isn't available.
• Once registered, give your ABN to Uber, because platforms may issue tax invoices on your behalf.
• If you already have an ABN, you must add GST registration within 21 days of starting. The simpler path is to have both in place before you log on.

One trap: fuel used in light vehicles on public roads, including for ride-sourcing, is not eligible for fuel tax credits. Ask a registered tax agent what you can claim instead.

Uber's own cut also affects your numbers. Uber charges a variable service fee and says its goal is to keep it as close to 25% as possible. Before you commit to a car, put your expected fares, kilometres and weekly rent into our rideshare profit calculator to see what is left.

For insurance, Uber requires CTP and at least third-party property damage cover, and for UberX you must be listed on the property damage policy. On our rentals the vehicle is insured, and the cover and excess are set out in the booking documents. Ask us how that cover fits Uber's rule for the car you choose.

Step 5: upload documents and activate the Driver app

With the licence, accreditation, tax and car sorted, signing up is mostly uploading. Uber's requirements page lists what it asks for, and the order below keeps the waiting to a minimum:

1. Start your sign-up in the Uber Driver app or on Uber's website and choose Melbourne as your city.
2. Upload your valid full Victorian licence, proof of identity that verifies your right to work, and a clear profile photo.
3. Add the state documents Uber asks for in Victoria, including your driver accreditation.
4. Consent to the background check. Uber says the process varies by city.
5. Add the car's details and documents: registration, commercial passenger vehicle registration, inspection and insurance.
6. Add your ABN, then wait for Uber to approve the account before you go online.

Use clear scans or photos of every document. A blurry upload or an expired document is the easiest way to add days to the wait.

How long does the whole process take?

The fixed parts are set by the rules. The rest depends on how quickly you get each document together.

A worked example: say your full licence is issued on 15 January 2027. You meet the six-month rule on 15 July 2027. If you apply for accreditation that day, 20 business days takes you to about 12 August 2027, and that is the earliest realistic first trip. Line up your ABN, GST and car while accreditation is processing, so nothing else is holding you back when it arrives.

Should you buy, finance or rent the car?

Every option gets you a car that can qualify. The differences are cash, commitment and who deals with breakdowns.

Renting removes the parts of the process that involve buying a car: finding one that qualifies, getting it checked, transferring it and paying for every service and repair. Our terms are short. Rent is billed weekly in advance, with a one-month minimum, then you can hand the car back with 2 weeks' notice. The vehicle is insured, with cover and excess in the booking documents, and we pay for scheduled servicing and wear-and-tear repairs. You pay fuel, tolls, parking, fines, and damage up to the excess. The bond is refunded within 30 days of return, with any deductions itemised; our guide to how rental bonds work explains the process. We're not registered for GST, so our rent has no GST in it.

At the time of writing, our older petrol cars start from about $150 a week, our 2025 and 2026 hybrids run from roughly $220 to $430, and the 8-seat Kia Carnival is $430 to $560. Rent and bond are shown on every listing. Check the build year on older cars: some are already near or past Uber's 15-year limit and suit Uber Eats or private driving better than UberX.

When you're ready, browse the rideshare category or the full vehicle list, and send a request for the car you want. We'll call or WhatsApp you to confirm the car, the price and the pickup time.

Questions people ask