Under a Section 19 Permit you don’t need a special licence to drive a minibus provided you are not driving for hire and reward and the minibus’ GVW is 3500kg or under (other conditions apply). Minibuses over 3.5 tonnes require D1 entitlement to drive them – this can be inherited (on licences issued before Jan 1st 1997) or you can take the full D1 test.