Landlord licensing in Kingston upon Hull

Required for any HMO let to 5 or more people forming 2+ households who share facilities.

Hull City Council does not currently operate, and has not announced any plans to introduce, a selective licensing scheme. The council has previously commissioned briefing papers exploring whether additional and/or selective licensing could be justified by the local evidence base, but no scheme has been progressed to consultation or designation. Landlords letting single-family or single-household properties in Hull do not need a property licence; only properties meeting the mandatory HMO threshold (5+ occupants in 2+ households sharing facilities) require licensing. Hull's primary regulatory tool for the private rented sector remains the planning Article 4 Direction (in force since October 2013, expanded August 2019), which controls the conversion of single-family homes into HMOs in designated areas of the city.

Hull City Council (Kingston upon Hull) does not currently operate any additional HMO licensing scheme. Only the national mandatory HMO licensing scheme applies — properties occupied by 5 or more persons forming 2 or more households who share a bathroom or kitchen require a mandatory HMO licence. Mandatory HMO licences in Hull last 5 years and are not transferable. The application requires a non-refundable initial payment of £225 (which covers administration, processing and the fit-and-proper-person check), with an invoice for the outstanding balance issued separately. The council moved away from per-occupant fee bands to a per-bedroom fee structure following its 2018-19 fees policy review. Although Hull does not have additional HMO licensing, the planning department has had a borough-wide HMO Article 4 Direction in place since October 2013 in a specific geographical area, expanded on 8 August 2019 to cover additional areas. Within the Article 4 area, an application for change of use must be made if a property is converted from a family house (use class C3) to an HMO of 3+ persons (use class C4). Properties demonstrably already used as HMOs by 3-6 people before the relevant date can claim "established use" and continue. In September 2022 the planning department also introduced Supplementary Planning Document 20 dealing with HMO standards. Hull City Council has previously considered the case for additional and/or selective licensing in briefing papers but has not progressed any discretionary scheme to designation. Operating an unlicensed mandatory HMO exposes the landlord to prosecution with an unlimited fine, a civil penalty notice of up to £30,000 per offence without warning, Rent Repayment Orders of up to 12 months rent, and an inability to serve a section 21 notice while the property remains unlicensed.