Qualifying for a Blue Badge

For more information, visit the Parkinson’s UK website (last updated September 2022).

You may qualify for a Blue Badge automatically or you may need to have an assessment.

Automatic qualification

To automatically qualify for a Blue Badge, you must:

  • be getting the higher rate mobility component of Disability Living Allowance, or
  • be assessed as having eight points or more under the ‘moving around’ activity of the mobility component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP), or
  • be registered blind, or
  • be getting War Pensioners’ Mobility Supplement, or

In England:

  • if you have received a lump sum payment from the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (within tariff levels 1-8) and have been certified as having a permanent and substantial disability, and includes Permanent Mental Disorder under tariff 6. You must also have a substantial disability that causes an inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking, or
  • you have scored 10 points specifically for descriptor E (being unable to undertake any journey because it would cause overwhelming psychological distress) under the ‘planning and following journeys’ activity of the Personal Independence Payment assessment

In Northern Ireland:

  • you receive a benefit under the Armed Forces and Reserves Forces Compensation Scheme (within tariff levels 1-8) and have been certified by the Service Personnel and Veterans Agency (SPVA) as having a permanent impairment which causes inability to walk or a lot of difficulty walking

In Scotland:

  • get the enhanced mobility component of Adult Disability Payment and have been awarded either eight points or more in the ‘moving around’ activity or 12 points in the ‘planning and following a journey’ activity or enhanced rate mobility without reference to points

In Wales:

  • 12 points under the ‘planning and following journeys’ activity of the mobility component of Personal Independence Payment

Qualifying for a Blue Badge through assessment

To qualify through assessment, you must have a permanent and substantial disability which means that:

In England:

  • you can’t walk at all
  • you can’t walk without help from someone else or using mobility aids
  • you find walking very difficult due to pain, breathlessness or the time it takes
  • walking is dangerous to your health and safety
  • you have a terminal illness, which means you can’t walk or find walking very difficult and have a DS1500 form
  • you have a severe disability in both arms and drive regularly, but can’t operate pay-and-display parking machines
  • you are constantly a significant risk to yourself or others near vehicles, in traffic or car parks
  • you struggle severely to plan or follow a journey
  • you find it difficult or impossible to control your actions and lack awareness of the impact you could have on others
  • you regularly have intense and overwhelming responses to situations causing temporary loss of behavioural control
  • you frequently become extremely anxious or fearful of public/open spaces.

In Scotland

  • have a substantial disability lasting at least 12 months that means you can’t walk at all or that means you’re virtually unable to walk, or
  • regularly drive and can’t use parking meters because of a severe disability in both arms, or
  • have a mental condition that means you lack awareness about the danger of traffic when making journeys.

If you have a mental condition that means you lack awareness about the danger of traffic when making journeys, you can’t apply online. You should call your local council’s Blue Badge team to discuss your case.

In Wales

  • be completely unable to walk, or
  • have considerable difficulty walking, or
  • have a substantial impairment to mobility, or
  • have a severe disability in both arms, which means a driver has significant difficulty or is unable to use parking meters, or
  • have a severe cognitive impairment and are unable to plan or follow any journey without the help of someone else, or
  • have a terminal illness that seriously limits your mobility.

You can check to see if you’re eligible for a Blue Badge and apply for, or renew your application online at the link below (except for Aberdeen City Council, where you should apply via the council’s website). 

Apply for or renew your Blue Badge application

If you live in Northern Ireland, follow the link below to check if you’re eligible for a Blue Badge and apply for, or renew your application online.

Northern Ireland Blue Badge Scheme

Contact your local council for more information or if you need help with an application.

There is a cost for a badge in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. There’s no charge for a Blue Badge in Wales. A badge lasts up to 3 years.