Additional HMO licensing in Thurrock

What the designation says

An additional HMO licensing scheme is in force across the whole of Thurrock. The designation was made on 7 May 2025 under section 56 of the Housing Act 2004, came into force on 7 September 2025 and ceases to have effect on 6 August 2030 unless the council revokes it earlier. It applies to every house in multiple occupation as defined by section 254 of the Act that is occupied by three or more people forming two or more households, anywhere in the borough. A property is outside the scheme only where it is already licensable under mandatory licensing, is subject to an interim or final management order, holds a temporary exemption, or is a building listed in Schedule 14 of the Act. In practice that means a shared home of three or four occupants now needs a licence where previously only five or more did. The scheme was extended borough-wide after an earlier trial covering eleven wards. The designation is cited as the Thurrock Council Designation of an Area for Additional Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation 2025.

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.

Thurrock's own licensing page →