Does my rental property need a landlord licence?

Whether your property needs a licence depends on where it is located and how it is used. All HMOs (Houses in Multiple Occupation) with 5 or more occupants require a mandatory licence. Many councils also operate selective licensing schemes covering all private rented properties in a defined area, and additional licensing schemes for smaller HMOs. Use the Tuxa checker to instantly find out if your property is in a licensing area.

What happens if I rent a property without a licence?

Renting a property without the required licence is a criminal offence. Landlords can face an unlimited fine in court, or a civil penalty of up to £30,000 issued by the council. Tenants can also apply for a Rent Repayment Order, which can require the landlord to repay up to 12 months of rent. Unlicensed landlords cannot serve a valid Section 21 notice to regain possession of their property.

How do I find out if my area has a selective licensing scheme?

The quickest way is to use the Tuxa property licence checker. Enter any UK address or postcode and Tuxa will instantly check against all 361 UK councils to show whether the property is in a selective, additional or mandatory HMO licensing area. Results are free to view.

Selective vs Additional Licensing: Key Differences for Landlords

Q: What is selective licensing?

Selective licensing is a scheme introduced under the Housing Act 2004 that allows local councils to require all private landlords in a designated area to obtain a licence, regardless of the property type or number of occupants. Councils use selective licensing to tackle problems such as anti-social behaviour, low housing demand, or poor property conditions. Failure to obtain a licence can result in a fine of up to £30,000 or a rent repayment order.

Q: What is additional licensing?

Additional licensing extends HMO licensing beyond the mandatory national standard. Councils can designate areas where smaller HMOs (typically those with 3 or more occupants forming two or more households) must also be licensed. Additional licensing schemes are common in university cities and areas with high concentrations of shared housing.

The Three Types of Rental Licensing in England

There are three main types of rental property licensing in England and Wales, all established under the Housing Act 2004:

Mandatory HMO Licensing - applies nationally to all HMOs with 5 or more occupants forming 2 or more households.
Additional Licensing - extends HMO licensing to smaller HMOs in designated areas.
Selective Licensing - applies to all privately rented properties (not just HMOs) in designated areas.

Understanding the difference between these schemes is critical for landlords. As Orla Shields, CEO of Kamma, has noted: "You could drive through North London in a couple of hours and pass through sixteen different licensing regimes. By the time you've learnt one set of rules, you're already in another borough with completely different requirements."

What Is Additional Licensing?

Additional licensing is a discretionary scheme that allows councils to extend HMO licensing requirements beyond the mandatory threshold. A council can designate an additional licensing area to cover HMOs that would not otherwise require a mandatory licence - typically those with 3 or 4 occupants forming 2 or more households.

Councils must consult for at least 10 weeks before introducing an additional licensing scheme, and must demonstrate that a significant proportion of HMOs in the area are being managed sufficiently ineffectively as to give rise to one or more particular problems.

What Is Selective Licensing?

Selective licensing is broader in scope than additional licensing. It applies to all privately rented properties in a designated area, not just HMOs. A council can introduce selective licensing where it can demonstrate that the area suffers from low housing demand, significant anti-social behaviour, poor property conditions, or high levels of deprivation.

Since the General Approval 2024 came into force on 23 December 2024, local housing authorities in England no longer need confirmation from the Secretary of State before implementing a selective licensing scheme of any size (provided the scheme does not cover more than 20% of the private rented sector in the borough). This change has accelerated the growth of selective licensing schemes significantly.

Key Differences at a Glance

Feature	Mandatory HMO	Additional Licensing	Selective Licensing
Applies to	HMOs with 5+ occupants (2+ households)	Smaller HMOs in designated areas	All private rentals in designated areas
Scope	National	Local (designated areas)	Local (designated areas)
Requires council designation	No	Yes	Yes
Secretary of State approval needed	No	No (since Dec 2024)	No for schemes under 20% of PRS

Can a Property Be Subject to Both?

Yes. A property could theoretically fall within both an additional licensing area and a selective licensing area if the council has designated overlapping schemes. In practice, councils typically design their schemes to avoid duplication, but landlords should always check both.

The Scale of Licensing in 2025-2026

According to Kamma's data, there are now 128 active licensing schemes in England, with 49 new schemes launched in 2025 alone and 16 more planned for 2026. Nearly 70% of urban areas are covered by at least one scheme, rising to 88% in London. By the end of 2025, 21 out of 33 London local authorities had selective licensing schemes in place.

The MHCLG's independent review of selective licensing (2019) concluded that selective licensing "is an effective tool when implemented properly," and the pace of adoption has accelerated significantly since the General Approval 2024 removed the requirement for Secretary of State sign-off.

How Do I Check If My Property Needs a Licence?

Use the Tuxa property licence checker to instantly check whether your property falls within a selective or additional licensing area. With schemes launching regularly and boundaries changing, manual checks on council websites are increasingly unreliable. You can also track active licensing consultations and upcoming scheme changes. Tuxa monitors all active schemes and provides up-to-date results for any UK address.

Check Your Property Now

The fastest way to find out whether your property needs a licence is to use the Tuxa property licence checker — enter any UK address and get an instant result showing which schemes apply, scheme dates, and a direct link to the council's licensing page.