Additional HMO licensing in Croydon

What the designation says

Croydon Council designated a borough-wide additional HMO licensing scheme on 25 March 2026 under section 56 of the Housing Act 2004. It comes into force on 1 September 2026 and runs for five years. It covers smaller HMOs occupied by three or more people forming two or more households that are not already caught by mandatory licensing. A property holding a mandatory HMO licence does not also need an additional licence. SOURCE CONFLICT — WE FOLLOW THE INSTRUMENT. Croydon's additional HMO licensing designation under section 56 of the Housing Act 2004 states that the designation "is made on 25 March 2026 and shall come into force on 1st September 2026", ceasing 1 September 2031. Croydon's own website states 25 September 2026 on two separate landlord pages. The council contradicts its own instrument. We publish the instrument date, 1 September 2026, because a designation takes effect on the date the notice specifies and not on the date a summary page repeats. A landlord should hold a licence by 1 September 2026 to be compliant under either reading — the earlier date is the safe one, and being licensed early carries no penalty while being licensed late carries a civil penalty of up to £30,000, a rent repayment order and the loss of section 21.

What this means for a landlord

A licence must be in place before the property is let, not applied for afterwards. Operating unlicensed in a designated area is a criminal offence: a civil penalty of up to £30,000 per offence, a rent repayment order of up to twelve months' rent, and a section 21 notice that cannot be served while the property is unlicensed. Mandatory HMO licensing applies separately and everywhere, wherever a property is let to five or more people forming two or more households.

Croydon's own licensing page →