Merseyside · Council licensing
Landlord licensing in Liverpool
✓ Hand-verified 19 Aug 2026Liverpool operates discretionary property licensing. Letting an unlicensed property where a scheme applies risks a civil penalty of up to £30,000 and a rent repayment order — check whether your property is covered below.
Required for any HMO let to 5 or more people forming 2+ households who share facilities.
Liverpool sets this fee under section 63(3) of the Housing Act 2004. Its current charge is not yet recorded here.
The council’s own licensing page carries the charge that applies today — confirm it there before you budget.
Not established is not the same as free.
Selective licensing, branded Landlord Licensing in Liverpool, covering 16 designated wards and approximately 80% of the privately rented homes in the city. The current scheme came into force on 1 April 2022 and runs to 31 March 2027. Since launch it has received more than 56,000 licence applications, granted over 48,000 licences, carried out more than 19,000 inspections, identified over 3,500 housing hazards and issued more than 1,100 enforcement notices. As at 4 August 2026 the scheme has NOT been renewed. Liverpool is running a 10-week public consultation, independently managed by Opinion Research Services, which closes on 5 October 2026 and sets out three options for a successor: a citywide scheme covering 64 wards, a deprivation-based scheme covering 29 wards, or a poor-property-conditions scheme covering 26 wards. No option has been selected and no successor designation has been made, so the expiry is left at the verified 31 March 2027 and no future date has been assumed. The council does not publish the 16 ward names on its landing page, so the coverage is recorded by count rather than an invented ward list. RE-CHECK AFTER 5 OCTOBER 2026. Verified 4 Aug 2026 against liverpool.gov.uk and Liverpool Express.
Areas: 16 of Liverpool's 30 wards, under the poor housing conditions designation
Paid in two parts — one on application, the balance before the licence is issued.
- No fee where the landlord houses homeless households via the council
- NOTE a £995 figure circulates; that is a PROPOSED fee in a live consultation on three possible future schemes and is not payable
- Discount £449; stacked discounts down to £321
- Discounts: EPC C or above £64, all flats in a block £64, professional body membership £37 (Propertymark, Safeagent, Liverpool Student Homes, NRLA, North West Property Owners Association)
Liverpool — liverpool.gov.uk, read 19 Aug 2026
Scheme runs until: 31 March 2027
Liverpool does not operate an additional licensing scheme. The council's HMO licensing guidance states that any property with five or more people forming unrelated households who share amenities such as a kitchen or bathroom must have an HMO licence — the national mandatory threshold, applied citywide — and describes no scheme reaching smaller shares. A house let to three or four people forming two or more households therefore needs no HMO licence in Liverpool on that basis alone. It may still need a licence for a different reason: the city's selective licensing scheme covers designated wards said to take in up to 80% of Liverpool's private rented sector, and inside those wards every privately rented property is caught regardless of size. A landlord with a smaller share should therefore check the selective designation rather than conclude no licence is needed. Managing or controlling a licensable property without a licence, where no exemption applies, can lead to prosecution and an unlimited fine on conviction.
Common questions
Does Liverpool have a selective licensing scheme?
Yes. Liverpool operates a selective licensing scheme. Letting a property covered by it without a licence risks a civil penalty of up to £30,000, a rent repayment order of up to twelve months' rent, and the loss of the right to serve a section 21 notice.
Does Liverpool have an additional HMO licensing scheme?
No. Liverpool does not currently operate an additional HMO licensing scheme. Mandatory HMO licensing still applies wherever a property is let to five or more people forming two or more households.
Do I need an HMO licence in Liverpool?
A mandatory HMO licence is required anywhere in England and Wales, including Liverpool, where a property is let to five or more people forming two or more households who share basic amenities. Smaller shared houses may also need a licence where an additional licensing scheme applies.
- Free landlord compliance check — five questions, no account
- Tenancy agreement checker — findings cited to the Act and section
Selective licensing in Liverpool: areas, dates and fees →
All property licensing in Merseyside →
Source: Liverpool licensing page →
Every landlord in Liverpool also needs
A valid Gas Safety certificate (annual), an EICR (every 5 years), a valid EPC, a protected deposit, smoke & CO alarms, the Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet, and a current How to Rent guide — plus the new Section 8 possession rules since Section 21 was abolished on 1 May 2026.
Check your Liverpool property in 30 seconds
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