Alaska program
Temporary disability parking permit
A temporary Alaska disability parking permit can help when your child's walking is limited.
What it is
A temporary Alaska disability parking permit can help when your child's walking is limited.
Treatment can make the walk across a parking lot difficult. A temporary permit is based on what your child can physically do, rather than the cancer diagnosis alone. A clinician's certification is part of the application.
Eligibility rules
- A qualifying functional limitation is required.
- Alaska-licensed physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, podiatrists, speech-language pathologists, chiropractors, physiotherapists and occupational therapists may certify.
What you get
- A temporary permit for up to six months.
- Renewal with a new application and clinician certification.
What the help includes
- Anyone transporting the permit holder may use the marked space while the holder gets in or out.
- Alaska DMV charges no fee for a disability parking permit, including a temporary permit. A temporary permit can last up to six months; a new application and medical certification are needed for renewal.
If you decide to apply
- Ask an eligible clinician to complete the medical certification on DMV Form 861.
- Describe how far your child can walk and any need to stop and rest, then send the completed form through the DMV’s application route.
Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles · Official page ↗
After you ask
- An approved temporary permit states its expiration date. A renewal requires recertification.
- After you and the social worker discuss whether a permit fits, you or the certifying clinician can email completed Form 861 to doa.dmv.webmaster@alaska.gov. DMV says it will review the application and mail the permit within one week; that does not include postal delivery time. The form must identify your child as the permit holder.
Good to know
One qualifying test is being unable to walk 200 feet without resting. The clinician documents the limitation, not just the diagnosis.
Other details
- Your answers here do not settle whether your child meets the walking test.
Official sources
“Could our child's walking difficulties qualify for a temporary parking permit? What would the certification involve, and could you help us ask the right clinician if it fits?”
Why I’m asking: I want to make getting from the car to treatment more manageable when walking is hard.
More background and detailed requirements
Additional program information and published rules
Who does what
The three parts, side by side. The agency decides; nobody on this page does.
You
Take the form to a clinic visit and send it in.
Your social worker
The clinic certifies the functional limit.
The care team
Any of the listed clinicians can sign.
- Who decides
- The Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles.
- Ask the care team
- “Can you certify Form 861 for a temporary disability parking permit, describing how far my child can walk without resting?”
How to apply
First step: Take Form 861 to the next clinic visit and ask for it to be certified.
- Take Form 861 to the next clinic visit and ask for it to be certified.
- Ask the clinician to describe the walking limit, not just the diagnosis.
Official application / program page ↗
Where it starts: Complete Form 861 in the child’s name with certification. The parent or clinician can email it to doa.dmv.webmaster@alaska.gov. DMV states review and mailing within one week, excluding postal delivery.
What to gather
- Form 861
- The clinician's certification
How long: DMV states that review and mailing take up to one week; postal delivery is additional.
What a yes looks like
A temporary permit, valid for up to six months.
What a no looks like, and the next move
Usually the certification did not describe a functional limit. Ask the clinician to be specific.
Watch out
- It is the functional limit that qualifies, not the diagnosis.
- The disability parking permit is free, including a temporary permit.
The numbers and the rules
The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.
What it is worth
A temporary disability parking permit lasting up to six months, renewable with a fresh certification.
- $6 — Maximum length of a temporary permit
Covers: A parking permit for the child
Legal protection: Anyone transporting the permit holder may use the marked space while the holder gets in or out
What it costs the family: No fee for a disability parking permit, including a temporary permit.
The eligibility facts, as published
- Test
- a qualifying functional limitation, for example not being able to walk 200 feet without stopping to rest
- Duration
- up to six months for a temporary permit, renewable on application with recertification
- Certifier
- an Alaska-licensed physician, physician assistant, nurse practitioner, podiatrist, speech-language pathologist, chiropractor, physiotherapist or occupational therapist
The trap: The diagnosis alone does not qualify: it is the functional limit that does. Ask the clinician to write what your child cannot do.
Where I read this
- Form 861, application for a special disability parking permit — Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles, read September 10, 2026