Selective Licensing fees and charges

The Selective Licensing scheme came into effect on 1 September 2022 and will end on 31 August 2027 (midnight).

Application fees can only be paid by card. To submit the application, you will need to use a card that you can pre-authorise up to £1,510 as this is the maximum fee.

Please note that Selective Licence applications can only be submitted up to 4 weeks before the tenancy start date.

The below fees will be in effect from 1 September 2023 to 31 March 2024.

The below fees will be in effect from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025. Fees from 1 April 2025 will be set as part of our 2025-26 budget.

*Note the higher rate application fee is the default fee charged unless the applicant submits evidence the property only became licensable within 12 weeks of the application date. The onus is on the applicant to submit this evidence with the original application. The evidence can be attached as an “other” document when submitting the application. Acceptable evidence that the property only became licensable within 12 weeks of the application date includes: land registry / statement from solicitor to confirm the property was purchased within the past 12 weeks or copies of signed tenancy agreements dated within last 12 weeks.

Fee Types

The stage one fee is the same for all applications. The application will be reviewed before the stage 2 fee is charged, this is to check if the application meets criteria to be eligible for a discount. Any discounts are applied to the stage 2 fee based on (a) the application date and (b) certificates submitted with the original application. The stage 2 fee is required when the draft licence is served and will be taken automatically once the application has been reviewed. For this reason, pre-authorisation is requested when submitting the application for the maximum stage 2 fee as some landlords may not meet the criteria.

• Early bird: This is no longer available.
• Accreditation: Available to accredited licence holders and managing agents. To qualify, the application must be duly made with accreditation obtained and held throughout the duration of the licence, additionally all certificates must be valid and submitted with the application. This discount will be available throughout the scheme for new rented homes, providing the applicant submits evidence the property only became licensable within 12 weeks of the application date with the original application.
• Standard – this is the default fee unless the Higher Rate or Accreditation discount is applied.
• Higher Rate – this will be the default fee from 01 September 2023 until the end of the scheme unless the applicant submits evidence the property only became licensable within 12 weeks of the application date with the original application.

Why is there a stage one and two fee?

The Council can charge a fee to cover the costs associated with running the scheme and enforcing the scheme. The stage one fee covers the application processing costs whereas the stage two fee covers inspection, on-going scheme and enforcement costs.

Can I pay the licence fee in instalments?

It is not possible to set up a payment plan or further instalments.

Refunds

The licensing fees are set to recover the costs of the licensing scheme as a whole. Refunds are only made as listed below. Refunds will be made to the card used for the payment.

The retained amount covers the costs incurred by the Council.

Refund Policy