What is a DVLA check code and how do you generate one?

A DVLA check code is a one-time passcode a driver generates so that someone else — an employer, a hire company, an insurer — can view their driving record. It is the manual way to run a licence check, and its limitations are exactly why automated checking services exist.

How a driver generates one

1. Go to GOV.UK's View or share your driving licence information service.
2. Sign in with their driving licence number, National Insurance number and postcode.
3. Choose Get a check code.

The code is free and takes a couple of minutes. The driver gives the code plus the last 8 characters of their licence number to whoever needs to check.

How the checker uses it

The checker enters the code and licence-number fragment into GOV.UK's Check someone's driving licence information service and sees the record: licence status, categories held, endorsements and penalty points, and photocard expiry.

The rules that catch people out

• Codes expire after 21 days — and once used, they're spent. A code is single use.
• One code, one check. Checking a driver quarterly means chasing a fresh code from them every quarter, forever.
• The code shares the record as it stands that day. It tells you nothing about next month's disqualification.

Check code vs ongoing consent

For a one-off need — hiring a van at the weekend — the check code is the right tool. For an employer with a fleet, it scales badly: every check means asking every driver to log into GOV.UK and send you a code within 21 days, and the gaps between checks are where revocations and bans hide.

The alternative is checking through DVLA's commercial interface (Access to Driver Data), where the driver gives written consent once — valid for three years under DVLA's rules — and checks then run automatically on a schedule that follows the risk, with no code-chasing. That is the model DV Check uses: the driver consents from a link on their phone, and re-checks happen without anyone generating anything.

Frequently asked

Can an employer demand a check code?

An employer can require a licence check as a condition of driving for work — with the driver's cooperation. The duty of care sits with the employer either way; a driver who refuses a check simply shouldn't be driving for work.

Does a check code show the driver's address?

No — the checker sees the licence record, not the full personal record shown to the driver themselves.

Is the paper counterpart still valid?

No. The paper counterpart was abolished in 2015; points live only on the electronic record, which is why photocard inspection alone proves almost nothing.