HMO licensing explained: mandatory, additional and selective

In England, a rented house in multiple occupation (HMO) with five or more people from two or more households sharing a kitchen, bathroom or toilet will generally need a mandatory HMO licence. Smaller HMOs may need an additional licence under a council scheme. Other rented homes, including family lets, may need a selective licence in a designated area, subject to exemptions. The right route depends on the occupation, building and address.

Start with the applicable HMO licensing rules. A property required to be licensed under Part 2 of the Housing Act 2004 is excluded from selective licensing under Part 3. A council can operate several schemes across its area without requiring three licences for the same home. The government's selective licensing guidance explains this exclusion and the other exemptions.

Which licence should you check?

Use this table to choose which rules to investigate. It cannot decide every exemption or converted-building case. Our selective licensing guide covers the separate checks for homes outside HMO licensing.

Count people and households, then check the building

A household can be one person, a couple or members of the same family. Five unrelated friends sharing a house are five households; a couple and three unrelated friends are four. Record who will actually live there. The number of tenancy agreements does not settle the household count. See the GOV.UK HMO licence overview for the national starting point.

The old three-storey threshold for mandatory licensing was removed on 1 October 2018. However, a purpose-built flat in a block containing three or more self-contained flats is excluded from mandatory licensing under the 2018 rules. That does not settle whether an additional scheme applies. The government's HMO licensing reform guidance sets out the building categories and exclusions.

A building converted into self-contained flats can raise a separate section 257 HMO question. Do not assume that every converted block needs a licence, or that letting each flat separately removes the issue. Give the council the conversion history, building details and ownership information and ask which designation, if any, applies.

London examples: schemes in force in September 2026

Croydon: its borough-wide additional HMO licensing scheme started on 25 September 2026. The council says it covers smaller HMOs occupied by three or four people in two or more households, subject to its exclusions. It also confirms that a property already holding a mandatory HMO licence does not need an additional or selective licence for that same property. Check the published designation for unusual building arrangements.

Enfield: a new selective scheme started on 1 September 2026 across 17 wards. Its borough-wide additional HMO scheme began on 1 September 2025. The council's current licensing page distinguishes the routes and says existing licences remain valid until their stated expiry dates. For a selective renewal, check whether the property needs another licence under the new scheme.

Prepare an HMO licence application

Find the council's application requirements before agreeing a new letting or changing the proposed occupancy. The council assesses the suitability of the home and whether the proposed licence holder is a fit and proper person. Fees are set locally; there is no single England-wide HMO licence price.

Build a property file with the proposed occupiers and households, floor plan and room measurements, ownership and management details, and the certificates and fire-safety evidence the council requests. Compare the proposed use with any existing licence's permitted occupancy and conditions. Our guides to gas safety certificates and electrical safety reports help organise those separate obligations.

Follow the local submission process and keep the receipt, application reference and payment record. A saved portal draft is not a submitted application. Ask the licensing team to clarify any missing information and the position while an application is pending; do not assume that starting a form resolves an existing licensing problem.

Planning permission is a separate check. An HMO licence does not replace permission needed for the use or a conversion. Check the planning position, including any relevant Article 4 direction, with the council's planning team as well as its licensing team.

Renew before expiry and keep licence conditions visible

GOV.UK says an HMO licence can last up to five years and must be renewed before it expires. Read the actual licence: a shorter term may have been issued. Put its expiry, outstanding conditions and permitted occupancy into the property record, and give one person responsibility for the renewal.

Renewal arrangements vary. Enfield recommends planning around two months before expiry. In Camden, the published HMO renewal process says the application opens 30 days before expiry and must be submitted before the licence expires. Camden also distinguishes renewals from new applications where the holder or property circumstances change. These are council-specific processes, not a national deadline.

An agency taking over management should obtain the licence itself, check its holder and conditions, and ask the council how a change should be handled. Keep licence conditions alongside the wider landlord compliance checklist. A licence renewal does not renew a gas certificate or electrical report.

What happens if an HMO is unlicensed?

Operating an HMO without a required licence can lead to prosecution and an unlimited fine. A council may instead impose a civil penalty; Camden's current unlicensed HMO guidance gives a maximum of £40,000. These are possible enforcement outcomes, not automatic charges for every case.

A licensing offence can also support a rent repayment order. For offences committed from 1 May 2026, the maximum can be up to two years' rent; different rules apply to offences before that date, including a one-year maximum. The government's rent repayment order guidance explains the eligibility and time limits. The tribunal decides the award. For an ongoing licensing offence, the relevant rent is tied to the period of the offence, not automatically the whole tenancy.

If a required licence may be missing or expired, contact the council promptly and obtain advice about the specific property and dates. Keep accurate records of what was submitted and when.

Check the route for your next letting

Start with our free property licensing check, then verify the result against the council's current scheme and the property's circumstances. If you manage several homes, keep a separate record for each property showing the applicable route, evidence, conditions and person responsible for renewal. See how Tekniti works with letting agencies and portfolio landlords.