Council licensing · London
Licensing in Kensington and Chelsea
Kensington and Chelsea has additional HMO licensing across the whole council area.
Researched 14 October 2026 · Independently checked 14 October 2026
Check a specific address in Kensington and Chelsea
We match the postcode to its ward and the schemes below.
Licensing, ward by ward
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- Additional HMO licensing area18
Additional HMO licensing also covers the whole council area.
Current ONS ward boundaries. Exemptions apply. Use the postcode check and scheme details for your property.
- Selective licensing
- None
- Additional HMO licensing
- Yes, whole council area
- Article 4 on house shares
- None found
- Consultation
- None open
Licensing schemes
Additional HMO licence
In forceRoyal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Designation for an Area for Additional Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation (No.1) 2023
- Area
The whole area of the district of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, delineated and edged black on the map at Annex A.
- Runs
- 1 June 2023 to 31 May 2028
- Fee
£1,493 for 5 years
Licence fees page (last updated 1 April 2026): Part A £1,004 on application + Part B £489 on approval (debited automatically) = £1,493 for a property of up to 5 units. £72 per additional room above that. Same fee for mandatory and additional licences. Discounts: £200 for landlords accredited with LLAS, NRLA or equivalent, or employing a Safeagent or Propertymark qualified named manager; £30 per application where more than three applications share the same landlord and agent. No discount where the landlord failed to apply before being identified.
- Who needs one
- All section 254 HMOs occupied by 3 or more persons comprising 2 or more households that are not mandatory HMOs. This includes flats in purpose-built blocks containing more than two self-contained flats, which fall outside mandatory licensing.
- Exemptions
- Schedule 14 buildings; HMOs under Interim/Final Management Orders; s62 temporary exemptions; mandatory HMOs; section 257 HMOs (certain converted blocks of flats) are expressly excluded.
- Notes
- Designation made 20 October 2022 under the 2015 General Approval and in force 1 June 2023. Ceases 31 May 2028 unless revoked. The council aims to decide applications within three months. A property can be let once a valid application is submitted. The original consultation closed 20 June 2021. No renewal consultation has been found yet; the scheme runs until May 2028.
Mandatory HMO licence
In forceMandatory HMO licensing (Housing Act 2004 Part 2)
- Area
National scheme, applies across the borough.
- Fee
£1,493 for 5 years
Part A £1,004 + Part B £489 = £1,493 for up to 5 units; £72 per additional room (the HMO FAQ page says £70 in one sentence and £72 in its fee list). Discounts as for additional.
- Who needs one
- HMOs with five or more occupiers forming two or more households sharing facilities, except purpose-built flats in blocks of more than two self-contained flats (these fall under additional licensing).
- Notes
- Tenants of unlicensed properties may claim up to 12 months' rent through the tribunal (HMO FAQ page, last updated 29 April 2026).
Article 4 for house shares
We found no Article 4 direction on house shares in Kensington and Chelsea.
Civil penalty policy
The council's policy sets how it decides the size of a fine. The version we found has not been updated for the Renters' Rights Act.
Licensing offences are covered by the 'Private Sector Housing Enforcement Policy Updated 2025', which uses a maximum of £30,000 per offence (Housing and Planning Act 2016). It is not updated for the RRA £40,000 maximum. Failure to license a mandatory HMO (s72(1)) starts at £17,500 ('very serious'): reduced by £5,000 to £12,500 for a landlord with only one HMO and no more than one other dwelling, or increased by £5,000 to £22,500 for a portfolio of 6+ dwellings, 3+ HMOs or demonstrated experience. Failure to license under the additional scheme starts at £12,500 ('serious'), with the same adjustments (£7,500 or £17,500). Aggravating factors include the condition of the unlicensed property and evidence the landlord knew licensing was required. Separate penalties per offender. A separate 'Housing Enforcement Policy 2026' covering Renters' Rights Act tenancy reforms (end of s21, rent increases, discrimination, rental bidding) was consulted on from 16 February to 30 March 2026 and finalised (consultation feedback updated 18 September 2026). It is based on the ACEHO model and uses statutory-guidance starting points, but it does not replace the licensing penalty levels.
Consultations
Closed 30 March 2026
Not yet confirmed
These points were unresolved when we researched Kensington and Chelsea on 14 October 2026. Check them with the council before you rely on them.
- Not yet confirmed
No selective licensing scheme or consultation was found. The RBKC consultation hub has no results for 'selective', and the only HMO licensing consultation is the 2021 additional scheme proposal.
- Not yet confirmed
Whether RBKC will raise its licensing civil penalty levels to reflect the Renters' Rights Act £40,000 maximum. The 2025 policy still says £30,000.
- Not yet confirmed
The consultation page's link to the finalised 2026 Housing Enforcement Policy points to an unrelated housing allocation scheme page, so the final adopted text was not verified (the draft v4 PDF was read).
- Not yet confirmed
RBKC's democracy site (rbkc.moderngov.co.uk) timed out or returned a bot-check challenge, so the January 2025 Executive Decision on the CPN policy review (ED5010321) was not read.
- Not yet confirmed
Per-room fee: the licence fees page gives £72 per additional room, while the HMO FAQ page also states £70 in one sentence.
Landlord register
Licensing is separate from the national landlord register. Kensington and Chelsea is in London, where the planned registration window runs from 15 July 2027 to 14 October 2027. The regulations are still in draft. Register dates, fee and documents