Florida Disability Form HSMV 83039: Permits, Fees, Renewal

Form HSMV 83039 is the Florida application for a disabled person parking permit, used for new permits, renewals, and replacements. You fill out the top section with your personal information, a licensed medical professional completes and signs the certification section attesting to your qualifying disability, and you submit the finished form to your county tax collector or a motor vehicle service center. The form is available as a free PDF on the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) website.¹

Who the Form Is For

To qualify, you must be certified as legally blind or as having a disability that prevents you from walking 200 feet without stopping to rest. Section 320.0848 of the Florida Statutes and the form itself list seven qualifying categories:²

Inability to walk without a brace, cane, crutch, prosthetic, or the help of another person. If an assistive device fully restores walking ability without severe limitation, the person does not qualify.
Permanent need for a wheelchair.
Lung disease with forced expiratory volume for one second of less than one liter, or arterial oxygen below 60 mm/hg on room air at rest.
Regular use of portable oxygen.
Cardiac condition classified as Class III or IV under American Heart Association standards.
Arthritic, neurological, or orthopedic condition that severely limits walking.
Legal blindness, certified by an optometrist.

Who Can Sign the Medical Certification

The FLHSMV does not evaluate your disability. A licensed certifying authority must examine you and complete the physician’s section of the form. Florida law authorizes:¹

Physicians licensed under Florida Chapters 458 (medicine), 459 (osteopathic medicine), or 460 (chiropractic medicine).
Podiatric physicians licensed under Chapter 461.
Optometrists licensed under Chapter 463, but only for certifying legal blindness.
Advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) under Chapter 464, operating under a qualifying physician’s protocol.
Physician assistants licensed under Chapter 458 or 459.

Out-of-state physicians can also certify the disability, but they must include documentation of their licensure and a signed statement that they understand Florida’s eligibility guidelines.² The certifying authority must list their license number, state of licensure, business address, and signature.

One deadline matters more than any other on this form: the physician’s signature is valid for 12 months. An application submitted more than a year after the signature date will be rejected.¹

Filling Out the Form

You complete the applicant section with your full legal name as it appears on your Florida driver license or state ID, date of birth, sex, address, contact information, and Florida driver license or ID number. The certifying medical authority then checks the box for your qualifying condition, marks whether the disability is temporary or permanent, and signs and dates the form. If you cannot visit an office to obtain a Florida ID due to the severity of your disability, your physician checks a “Special Exception” box and provides a second signature.¹

Where to Submit a New Application

New applications must generally be submitted in person at a local tax collector’s office, license plate agency, or motor vehicle service center, along with proof of identity.³ Some counties accept mailed applications. Pinellas County encourages mailing the completed form to the county tax collector to avoid an office visit,⁴ and Flagler County similarly accepts mailed applications.⁵ Some offices accept faxed forms sent directly from the certifying authority. New applications cannot be filed online through the MyDMV Portal.⁶

Permit Types, Fees, and Validity

Which type of permit the form produces depends on how the physician certifies the disability.

Permanent Permit

Issued for long-term mobility impairments or legal blindness. Valid for four years, expiring on the holder’s birthday. No fee. The placard must display the holder’s driver license or state ID number and show a valid yellow registration decal on both sides.⁷

Temporary Permit

For short-term impairments, valid up to six months as specified by the certifying authority. The fee is $15. If the disability continues and a second temporary permit is needed, no additional fee is charged as long as the second application is filed within 12 months of the first permit’s issuance. Temporary permit holders cannot receive a secondary permit or a wheelchair license plate.⁸

Lifetime Permit

Effective July 1, 2026, Florida law establishes a lifetime permit for individuals certified as permanently disabled due to dismemberment or amputation. It is valid from issuance until the holder’s death and is not renewable. The placard will carry a validation sticker showing it does not expire. If a lifetime permit is lost or stolen, the replacement application may rely on a certificate of disability issued at any time, rather than one from the past 12 months.²

Expectant Mother Permit

A separate statute, Section 320.0849, covers expectant mothers. This uses a different form, HSMV 83040, signed by a physician licensed under Chapter 458 or 459. The permit is valid up to one year, costs $15, and is not renewable.⁹

Renewing a Permit

Permanent permits must be renewed every four years. To renew, submit a new Form HSMV 83039 signed by a certifying medical authority within the previous 12 months, plus a copy of the registration for the expiring permit. Renewals can be submitted in person, by mail, or by fax to the tax collector’s office in your county of residence.¹

Unlike new applications, renewals can also be completed through the FLHSMV’s MyDMV Portal, as long as you have already filed a current Form HSMV 83039 (signed within the last 12 months) with your local office.¹⁰ The portal also handles replacements and additional permit requests. Most portal transactions carry a $2 convenience fee.¹¹

There is one useful exception to the medical requirement. If you were previously certified as permanently disabled, FLHSMV will renew the permit once more for a four-year period without a new certificate. After that second period, a fresh medical certification is required again.²

Replacing a Lost, Stolen, or Damaged Permit

A replacement needs two forms: Form HSMV 83039 with a current medical certification, and Form HSMV 83146 (Application for Replacement License Plate, Validation Decal or Parking Permit).³ Both go to a motor vehicle service center in person, or you can use the MyDMV Portal’s replacement option.¹⁰ The statutory replacement fee is $1, waived if you provide a police report showing the permit was stolen.²

Secondary Permits and the Wheelchair License Plate

Florida allows a maximum of two permits per eligible person. A secondary permit can go to applicants certified as quadriplegic or to frequent travelers who regularly travel by plane, train, bus, or vessel and need one permit at the departure point and another at the destination.⁷ The secondary permit expires on the same date as the primary permit regardless of when it was issued, and the certifying authority must justify the second placard on the application.²

Instead of a hanging placard, a person who qualifies for a permanent permit can get a wheelchair symbol license plate under Section 320.0843. The applicant must be a Florida resident and the owner or lessee of the vehicle. The plate carries all the parking privileges of a standard permit.¹² The application takes either Form HSMV 83007 or HSMV 83039, a current vehicle registration certificate, and proof of insurance.¹³

Visitors and Veterans: When a Different Document Works

Florida honors disabled parking permits and plates issued by any other state or foreign country as long as they display the international symbol of accessibility. A visitor whose permit lacks that symbol must obtain a temporary Florida permit using Form HSMV 83039 plus acceptable photo ID (home-state driver license, passport, or U.S. territory ID). The fee is $15 and the permit is nonrenewable.¹⁴

Veterans certified by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or a branch of the Armed Forces as permanently and totally disabled from a service-connected condition can submit VA Form Letter 27-333 (or its equivalent), issued within the past 12 months, in place of the standard medical certification when applying for or renewing a parking permit.⁶

Who Can Legally Use the Permit

The permit belongs to the person it was issued to, not the vehicle. Fee exemptions and parking privileges apply only when the vehicle is actually transporting that person. Knowingly providing false information on the application, by either the applicant or the certifying professional, is a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail, a $1,000 fine, or both. Fraudulently obtaining a permit, displaying someone else’s permit while using an accessible space without the holder present, or using an unauthorized replica is a second-degree misdemeanor.² A second fraudulent-use conviction bars the person from obtaining a new permit for four years. Medical professionals who violate certification rules face discipline from their licensing boards. Suspected abuse can be reported through FLHSMV’s online complaint form.¹⁵

1
FLHSMV. Form HSMV 83039, Application for Disabled Person Parking Permit
2
Florida Legislature. Section 320.0848, Florida Statutes
3
FLHSMV. Disabled Person Parking Permits
4
Pinellas County Tax Collector. Disabled Parking Permits
5
Flagler County Tax Collector. Disabled Person Parking Permits
6
FLHSMV. Disabled Person Parking Permits FAQ
7
FLHSMV. Permanent Disabled Person Parking Permits
8
FLHSMV. Temporary Disabled Person Parking Permits
9
FLHSMV. Form HSMV 83040, Application for Expectant Mother Parking Permit
10
FLHSMV. MyDMV Portal
11
MyDMV Portal. MyDMV Portal Home
12
Florida Legislature. Section 320.0843, Florida Statutes
13
FLHSMV. Form HSMV 83007
14
FLHSMV. Disabled Person Parking Permits for Florida Visitors
15
FLHSMV. Parking Permit Abuse Complaint Form