lettance
← South East

Licensing in Fareham

Fareham has no selective or additional licensing scheme in force.

Ask an assistant about this page:

Check an address in Fareham

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
Not yet confirmed
Consultation
None open

Licensing schemes

  • Mandatory HMO licence

    In force

    Mandatory HMO licensing (national scheme, Fareham)

    Area

    The whole of Fareham Borough (national scheme).

    Fee

    Published standard fee: £1,090

    'Published Fees and Charges 2026/27' (Appendix A to the General Fund Fees and Charges report, Executive 7 January 2026), Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupancy (not subject to VAT), fee on application + fee on grant: 5 people £727 + £363 = £1,090; 6-10 people £913 + £457; 11-15 people £1,100 + £550; 16-20 people £1,276 + £633; more than 20 people £1,453 + £727. The 2025/26 column shows single totals (5 people £1,050; 6-10 £1,320; 11-15 £1,590; 16-20 £1,839; over 20 £2,100). Registered charities are exempt from fees (application form). The schedule also lists Renters' Rights Act civil penalties 'Up to £7,000' and 'Up to £40,000' as new items.

    Who needs one
    HMOs with five or more occupiers forming two or more separate households, regardless of storeys, in a house or self-contained flat that is not a purpose-built flat in a block of three or more self-contained flats, where occupants share amenities, at least one pays rent and it is their main residence (council HMO page).
    Exemptions
    The council page lists exempt properties such as student halls of residence and property owned or managed by the council, a social landlord or the NHS. The application form says registered charities are exempt from paying HMO licence fees.
    Apply on the council’s websiteLicence conditions
    How we checked this

    The council page says 'A licence once granted lasts for 5 years.' All known HMOs are inspected, with Hampshire Fire & Rescue where necessary, under a joint Fareham and Gosport fire safety protocol (January 2009). The council keeps a public register of HMO licences.

    Sources

Article 4 for house shares

Not yet confirmed

Whether Fareham has an Article 4 direction on house shares.

Council source

Civil penalty policy

The council's policy sets how it decides the size of a fine.

On 23 March 2026 the Executive approved for public consultation a 'Draft Policy on Civil Penalties Under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 and Other Housing Legislation' (moderngov.fareham.gov.uk), with up to £40,000 for serious, persistent or repeat offences and up to £7,000 for lower-level breaches; the draft sets a £17,000 starting point for failure to obtain an HMO licence (s.72(1)), landlord-type adjustment £13,600 / £20,400. A draft Private Rented Sector Housing Enforcement Policy was approved for consultation the same day (moderngov.fareham.gov.uk). Final adoption after consultation was not confirmed.

Fareham's civil penalty policy

Consultations

We found no consultations when we researched Fareham.

Not yet confirmed

We could not settle these points when we researched Fareham. 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 landlord and private housing pages, in the delegated and committee decisions list (October 2024 to October 2026), in the 2026 Executive agendas (January to October) or in the committee document search for 'selective licensing'. Absence is inferred, not stated by the council.

  • Not yet confirmed

    Confirm whether the March 2026 draft civil penalty and enforcement policies have been adopted after consultation; no adoption item appeared on the Executive agendas from May to October 2026.

  • Not yet confirmed

    Absence of an HMO Article 4 direction rests on the planning.data.gov.uk list; the council's own Article 4 page was not located.

Landlord register

The national landlord register is separate from licensing. Fareham 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