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Licensing in Cheltenham

Cheltenham has no selective or additional licensing scheme in force.

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Check an address in Cheltenham

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Licensing, ward by ward

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  • National rules only20

Current ward boundaries from ONS. Some homes are exempt, so check your postcode and the scheme details below.

Selective licensing
None
Additional HMO licensing
No
Article 4 on house shares
Yes
Consultation
None open

Licensing schemes

  • Mandatory HMO licence

    In force

    Mandatory HMO licensing (national scheme, Cheltenham fees)

    Area

    The whole of Cheltenham Borough (national scheme).

    Fee

    Published standard fee: £970

    Council HMO page, 'Fees effective from 1 April 2026': Part 1 (submission, administration and authorisation) £400.00, paid on application; Part 2 (inspection, assessment and processing) £570.00 for HMOs with five bedrooms or bed-living rooms, invoiced after the inspection. Part 2 add-ons: £55.00 per bedroom or bed-living room where six or more; £140.00 for all new applications, and for renewals where works or specific conditions are required; £90.00 per reminder letter (after the first), late submission or invalid application; £100.00 for a missed inspection or one cancelled less than 24 hours before. standard_gbp is Part 1 plus Part 2 for a 5-room HMO, excluding the £140 new-application add-on.

    Who needs one
    HMOs occupied by five or more people forming two or more households who share facilities such as a kitchen or bathroom. The council's page adds that purpose-built flats are included where there are up to two flats in the block and one or both are occupied by five or more people in two or more households, including flats above shops; each such flat needs its own licence.
    Exemptions
    Statutory exemptions under Schedule 14 to the Housing Act 2004.
    Apply on the council’s websiteLicence conditions
    How we checked this

    Online application form (no save option; times out after 15 minutes of inactivity). A draft ('minded to') licence is issued first and the final licence about 3 weeks later if there are no representations; the council aims to decide valid applications within 16 weeks and to inspect within 3 years. The HMO page says 'The licence for your HMO is valid for a maximum of three years' and 'A licence lasts for three years'; renewal reminders are emailed two months before expiry, and a renewal received after expiry is treated as a new application with new-application fees. The page quotes both the pre-2026 civil penalty maximum of £30,000 'as at October 2018' and, in its renewal section, £40,000; the council's 2026 civil penalty policy uses £40,000. The public register is available on request.

    Sources

Article 4 for house shares

Cheltenham has an Article 4 direction on HMOs (houses in multiple occupation, or shared houses). Turning a family home into a shared house may need planning permission.

Area
Specific area: the St Paul's area, within the boundary edged red on the direction (map-defined; do not treat as the whole current St Paul's ward). The council's Article 4 page says it is the only Article 4 direction in Cheltenham and it withdraws permitted development rights to change from C3 (dwellinghouse) to C4 (HMO). The direction was made under seal on 11 June 2019 and confirmed on 8 October 2019; the council's HMO page states 'The direction came into force 11 June 2020.'
Takes effect
11 Jun 2020

Council source

Civil penalty policy

The council's policy sets how it decides the size of a fine. The version we found has been updated for the Renters' Rights Act.

'Civil penalties under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 and other housing legislation', version 1.2 (next review 14 April 2027). First approved by cabinet 16 September 2025; an officer decision on 20 March 2026 (version 1.1) aligned it with the Renters' Rights Act (new £7,000 and £40,000 maxima from 1 May 2026, section 249A maximum raised from £30,000 to £40,000). Version 1.2 (officer decision 21 July 2026) added section 6A breaches. It uses a starting point with landlord-type adjustments of minus or plus 20%. Failure to obtain an HMO licence (s.72(1)): starting point £17,000 (range £13,600 to £20,400). Knowingly permitting over-occupation (s.72(2)): starting point £20,000. Licence condition breaches have separate starting levels by condition type. A discounts section is included.

Cheltenham's civil penalty policy

Consultations

We found no consultations when we researched Cheltenham.

Not yet confirmed

We could not settle these points when we researched Cheltenham. Check them with the council before you rely on them.

  • Not yet confirmed

    No additional or selective licensing scheme, proposal or consultation was found. The council's HMO page describes mandatory licensing only, and a web search found no Cheltenham proposal. The council does not state the absence, and the democracy.cheltenham.gov.uk committee papers were not searched item by item.

Landlord register

The national landlord register is separate from licensing. Cheltenham is in South West, where registration is planned from 15 August 2027 to 14 November 2027. The regulations are still in draft. Read about the register