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How to become a Didi driver in Australia

Didi Chuxing is currently one of the big players in the ridesharing industry, along with other popular rideshare apps. Based in China, it’s slowly, but surely catching up to the big players on the market. If you’re wondering how to become a Didi driver in Australia and why, we have the answers.

In Australia, Didi operates in 28 cities within New South Wales, Victoria, Australian Capital Territory, Queensland, Western Australia, and South Australia.

Didi offers three types of services in Australia, to cover a wider area of customer needs:

Didi Max - the standard Didi services, similar to UberX, quick and affordable rides for up to five people.
Didi Express - the premium Didi service offering rides for up to two people.
Didi Delivery - Didi parcel delivery service, affordable, on-demand city-wide deliveries.

Didi driver requirements in Australia

Here are the requirements you need to meet to become a Didi driver in each Australian state.

Didi driver requirements in NSW

To become a Didi driver in NSW, you must:

Have a valid Australian driver licence for at least 12 months
Have no record of serious criminal or traffic offences
Have a smartphone, mobile number, and email address
Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or have the right to work in Australia
Have an ABN and be GST-registered
Be listed as the insured driver on the insurance.

Didi driver requirements in VIC

To become a Didi driver in VIC, you must:

Have a valid Australian driver licence for at least 6 months
Hold a current Driver Accreditation
Have a smartphone, mobile number, and email address
Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or have the right to work in Australia
Have an ABN and be GST-registered
Be listed as the insured driver on the insurance.

Didi driver requirements in QLD

To become a Didi driver in QLD, you must:

Have a valid Australian driver licence for at least 12 months
Hold a Driver Authority of Type BHTX, TAXI or LIMO
Complete the mandatory driver training
Have a smartphone, mobile number, and email address
Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or have the right to work in Australia
Have an ABN and be GST-registered
Be listed as the insured driver on the insurance.

Didi driver requirements in WA

To become a Didi driver in WA, you must:

Have a valid Australian driver licence for at least 12 months
Hold a current Passenger Transport Driver Authorisation (PTD-A)
Have a smartphone, mobile number, and email address
Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or have the right to work in Australia
Have an ABN and be GST-registered
Be listed as the insured driver on the insurance.

Didi driver requirements in SA

To become a Didi driver in SA, you must:

Have a valid Australian driver licence for at least 12 months
Hold a current Driver Accreditation
Hold a valid Operator Accreditation
Have a smartphone, mobile number, and email address
Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or have the right to work in Australia
Have an ABN and be GST-registered
Be listed as the insured driver on the insurance.

Didi car requirements in Australia

First of all, your car must be in great condition, free of any damage or decals. It must also meet the following conditions:

Minimum 4 doors
Seat minimum 4 passengers and maximum 6 passengers
Third-party cover or comprehensive insurance
Not be a former taxi.

Just like the driver requirements, each Australian state has specific car requirements for Didi drivers. Here are the requirements for Didi Max for each Australian state.

Didi car requirements in NSW

To be eligible for Didi driving in NSW, you car must:

Be no older than 15 years
Pass a pink slip vehicle inspection in the last 12 months (not applicable if the car is new and registered in the last 12 months)
Have NSW registration
Have NSW CTP insurance.

Didi car requirements in VIC

To be eligible for Didi driving in VIC, you car must:

Be no older than 15 years
Pass a Redbook rideshare vehicle inspection in the past 12 months
Be registered as a Commercial Passenger Vehicle in Victoria.

Didi car requirements in QLD

To be eligible for Didi driving in QLD, you car must:

Be no older than 15 years
Have a roadworthy certificate inspection from the past 12 months (not applicable if the car is new and registered in the last 12 months)
Have a Booked Hire Service Licence (BHSL).

Didi car requirements in WA

To be eligible for Didi driving in WA, you car must:

Be no older than 15 years
Have WA registration
Have 3F Motor injury Insurance (MII)
Have Passenger Transport Vehicle Authorisation (PTV-A).

Didi car requirements in SA

To be eligible for Didi driving in SA, you car must:

Be no older than 8 years
Pass a vehicle inspection in the past 12 months
Be covered under a current Upgraded CTP insurance (class: 48, 98, 7, 58).

Signing up to Didi is a fairly simple process and it takes place entirely in the Didi Driver app. That’s where Didi validates your account, which you’ll also be using daily as a Didi driver to complete rides. Download the Didi Driver app for iOS Download the Didi driver app for Android

1. Create an account in the Didi Driver app

First, you need to create an account for yourself, by adding your phone number and agreeing to the terms and conditions.

2. Upload required documents

The next step in becoming a Didi driver is to upload the required documents. First of all:

A profile picture
Proof of ID – passport, Immi card, Australian or NZ birth certificate or citizenship certificate.

Depending on the state you’ll be driving in, here are other documents that you need to upload.

NSW requirements

NSW driver’s licence – held for at least 12 months in the last four years. You will also need to have a T condition on your licence, also known as Passenger Transport Licence Condition (PTLC) - Apply for a PTLC
Driving history – a full report of offences and dates, issued by Service NSW for the past 6 months - Request a driving record online
Car registration – your car must be registered in NSW
Car inspection – it can be an e-Safety (pink slip) inspection report issued by an Authorised Inspection Station or Redbook Inspection Report for ridesharing purposes - Find an inspection station in NSW
Car insurance -your car must have a third-party damage or comprehensive insurance cover, additional to the CTP insurace, and you should be listed as the insured driver
National police check – issued by an ACIC accredited provider within the previous three months - Get your National Police check

VIC requirements

Driver’s licence – full VIC driver licence with a minimum experience of 6 months
Driver accreditation (DA) - Apply for a Driver accreditation
Commercial Passenger Vehicle Registration - your car should be registered as a commercial passenger vehicle - Register your car here
Car inspection – issued in the last 12 months - Book a car inspection
Car insurance – third party damage or comprehensive insurance. You must be listed as the insured driver.

QLD requirements

QLD driver’s licence (Australian or overseas) – held continuously for at least 12 months
Driver Authority (DA) – BHTX Driver Authority. To apply for one, you must pass a medical examination, a criminal history check, and a driving history check - Apply for a Driver Authority
Booked Hire Service Licence (BHSL) - to apply for a BHSL, your car must be registered in Queensland with the appropriate purpose of use (POU) and have a certificate of inspection - Apply for a BHSL
Certificate of inspection – your car must be inspected every 12 months and you need to submit a current Certificate of Inspection issued by an Approved Inspection Station (AIS) or a TMR Inspection site - How to get a certificate of inspection
Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance – class 26 or 4
Car insurance – third party or comprehensive. You have to be the insured driver.
Mandatory driver training – since the 1st of August 2019, you’re required to complete online training in anti-discrimination and disability awareness.
E-tag – provided by Linkt, RTA, RMS, or Eway Interlink. You can either register for an E-Tag or upload a signed note stating that you don’t have one and that you acknowledge that without it you can’t pick up passengers from Brisbane Airport.

WA requirements

WA driver’s licence – held in WA for at least 12 months
Passenger Transportation Driver Authorisation (PTD-A) – an annual authorisation that permits you to drive a car for hire or reward - Apply for a PTD-A
Passenger Transport Vehicle Authorisation (PTV-A) – this allows you to provide transport services for passengers. The PTV authorisation must be issued in the On-demand Charter vehicle (OD-C) category - Apply for a PTV-A
Car insurance – third party or comprehensive
3F Motor Injury Insurance (MII)

SA requirements

SA driver’s licence – held in SA for at least 6 months
Driver Accreditation (DA) - issued for a maximum of three years - Apply for Driver Accreditation
Operator Accreditation (OA) - required for any person who provides rideshare services in SA - Apply for Operator Accreditation
Car insurance – third party or comprehensive
CTP upgrade – insurance class 48, 98, 7 and 58
Car inspection – you need to submit this each year. Didi provides two locations in Adelaide where you can perform a car inspection.

3. Check confirmation SMS and email

Once your registration has been approved, you’ll receive SMS and email confirmations that you’re ready to start earning. It usually takes around 3 business days for Didi to review your application. You’ll also receive 2 Didi stickers that you need to place on your car, in order for passengers to know that you offer ridesharing services.

Didi FAQ

Why should I become a Didi driver?

As a global platform, Didi is constantly making efforts to improve their services, for both passengers and drivers. Here are a few reasons to become a Didi driver.

Low service fees and additional bonuses - this means more money in your pocket with each ride
Generous referral schemes and promos for riders – you’ll earn more per referral when there’s an active campaign
Destination preview feature – you’ll know the destination before accepting the ride
Unmatch feature – you can block passengers from future requests
Exclusive discounts and benefits – car maintenance, tyres, car insurance, and fuel deals
Didi Advance – a reward program that allows you to gain special benefits, e.g. up to 20% lower service fee
In-app Service Centre
In-app messaging
Safety training
24/7 customer support

How much can I make as a Didi driver in Australia?

There is no exact number to how much Didi drivers make. However, according to some rideshare driver groups, Didi is paying drivers for base trips on average $0.20+ (cca. 15%) more per km than Uber. This difference also comes from the 14%-15% commission that Didi applies, compared to Uber’s 27.5%. However, compared to other rideshare apps, it’s worth considering that Didi is not as widespread across the country and that it doesn’t offer surge pricing for drivers either. Uber’s surge pricing can earn you up to 1.3 more, and they also have more riders across Australia.

TIP: Use a navigation app to go straight to the destination through the shortest and cheapest route.

Check our blog on the ongoing debate Google Maps vs Waze and see which one is better for rideshare driving.

How can Splend help me become a Didi driver in Australia?

We provide you with a safe and reliable new-model car for rideshare or food delivery. You get the full service from day one, which means that besides the car, we provide a bunch of other things included:

A ridesharing-approved car, ready to drive with Didi
Dedicated driver support
CTP insurance
Loss & damage cover
Scheduled maintenance
24/7 roadside assistance
Referral program

About Splend

We enable people to make money by driving for on-demand apps such as Uber. We’re more than a car subscription provider. In addition to new-model cars and all the essentials to start earning money with Uber as quickly as possible, our customers enjoy driver training and dedicated support, as well as customer benefits such as partner discounts and exclusive events. For more information about Splend, make an appointment and drop by to your local Splend Hub, email us, or say hello on 1800 775 363.