Base Affirmation: the online confirmation that a TLC-licensed for-hire base submits for your vehicle before you apply for a new FHV vehicle license. It tells TLC which base the car will be affiliated with. On TLC's Get a For-Hire Vehicle License page it is step 2: "Your Base must submit a Base Affirmation for your vehicle." You then get a confirmation email. Without that email, LARS will not let you submit the application.
Rule citation
The term itself is on TLC's application page, not in the rule book. It is how you prove what the rules require:
- §59A-04(h) Affiliation Required: "All Applicants for a For-Hire Vehicle License must demonstrate that they are affiliated with an appropriate For-Hire Base."
- §59A-04(i): a for-hire vehicle can only affiliate with one base at a time.
- §59A-11(e): a vehicle may only be dispatched if it is affiliated with a validly licensed base.
(TLC Rules, Chapter 59, updated February 27, 2026.)
Where it fits in the application
Example: You buy an approved wheelchair accessible minivan and agree with a livery base to affiliate with it. The base submits the affirmation for your vehicle online. Once your confirmation email arrives, you can file in LARS. If no email arrives, TLC's page says to contact the base. Timing details: how long does it take to get TLC plates?
Things to know
- The base chooses. TLC says bases "may make their own decisions about which vehicles, WAV and non-WAV, to affiliate" (FHV accessibility FAQ). No base has to affirm your car.
- Check the base is licensed. Look it up on TLC's open data before you agree; see TLC open data lookups and how to find which base a TLC car belongs to.
- Read the deal. Agreeing to affiliate is a business relationship with rules of its own: FHV base agreement rules and can a base charge fees not in my agreement?
- Bases must be truthful with TLC. Rule 59B-13(j)(1) requires every base to answer TLC truthfully and follow its directives.
Related terms
Base · FHV base affiliation · every TLC license type · if your base is suspended · vehicles hub
Frequently asked questions
Who submits the base affirmation?
The base. TLC says your base must submit a Base Affirmation for your vehicle online, and you then receive an email confirming it.
I never got the base affirmation email. What now?
TLC says that without the email confirmation you will not be able to submit the application, and you must contact the base.
Do I need a new base affirmation to change bases?
No. A base change on an existing license is a base transfer: you send TLC a Transfer Application signed by the new base and pay $25.
Sources
Last reviewed against the official sources on .
- TLC: Get a For-Hire Vehicle License (How to Apply, step 2) nyc.gov
- TLC Rules Chapter 59 (§59A-04(h)–(i), §59A-11(e)), updated Feb 27, 2026 nyc.gov
- TLC: Vehicle, Plate and Base Transfers nyc.gov
- TLC: FHV Wheelchair Accessibility Owner/Driver Information nyc.gov
Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll check it against the official source.
TLC Help is not a law firm and is not affiliated with the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission or OATH. Explanations on this site are general information, not legal advice. Legal representation is provided by independent attorneys and OATH-registered representatives in our network.