Licensing in Elmbridge

Elmbridge has no selective or additional licensing scheme in force.

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Check an address in Elmbridge

We'll match the postcode to its ward and the schemes below.

Licensing, ward by ward

Select a ward to see its name and licensing.

National rules only16

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: None found
Consultation: None open

Licensing schemes

Mandatory HMO licence
In force
Mandatory HMO licensing (national scheme, Elmbridge fees)
Area
The whole of Elmbridge Borough (national scheme).
Fee
Published standard fee: £600
Council HMO page (no fee year printed): '£600 application fee' for a 5-year HMO licence, with a £50 discount for members of a recognised landlord association or accreditation scheme. The Housing Enforcement Policy adopted from 1 May 2026 splits the fee: new licence stage one £300 on application + stage two £300 on award = £600; renewal stage one £400 + stage two £150 = £550; £50 membership discount. No per-person charge shown.
Who needs one
All HMOs occupied by 5 or more people who are not living together as a single household but share facilities (council HMO page).
Apply on the council’s website Licence conditions
How we checked this
The council inspects before licensing and carries out routine inspections of all known HMOs. It publishes an HMO register (PDF, January 2026). The page still says unlicensed operation can lead to a civil penalty 'of up to £30,000', which predates the Renters' Rights Act 2025 maximum.
Sources
- elmbridge.gov.uk: houses multiple occupation hmos
- mygov.elmbridge.gov.uk: Appendix One Draft Housing Enforcement Policy (PDF)

Article 4 for house shares

We found no Article 4 direction on house shares in Elmbridge.

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.

Housing Enforcement Policy adopted by Cabinet on 18 March 2026 (minute 58/25) 'with effect from 1 May 2026', with the previous policy running alongside for six months for cases received before 1 May 2026 (mygov.elmbridge.gov.uk). Appendix 2 is a civil penalties framework under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 (£7,000 and £40,000 statutory maxima): failure to obtain an HMO licence (s.72(1)) has a £17,000 starting point (landlord-type adjustment £13,600 / £20,400). The council's HMO page still describes the old £30,000 maximum.

Elmbridge's civil penalty policy

Consultations

We found no consultations when we researched Elmbridge.

Not yet confirmed

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

Not yet confirmed
No selective or additional licensing scheme, proposal or consultation was found on the council's housing, landlord and HMO pages or in the council's committee document search (mygov.elmbridge.gov.uk: 'selective licensing', 'houses in multiple occupation', 'civil penalties housing'). Absence is inferred, not stated by the council.
Not yet confirmed
Confirm the fee year of the £600 HMO fee.

Landlord register

The national landlord register is separate from licensing. Elmbridge is in South East, where registration is planned from 15 March 2027 to 14 June 2027. The regulations are still in draft. Read about the register