Council licensing · London
Licensing in Tower Hamlets
Tower Hamlets has additional HMO licensing across the whole council area.
Researched 14 October 2026 · Independently checked 14 October 2026
Check a specific address in Tower Hamlets
We match the postcode to its ward and the schemes below.
Licensing, ward by ward
Tap a ward, or focus it with your keyboard, to see its name and recorded coverage.
- Additional HMO licensing area20
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
- Yes
- Consultation
- None open
Licensing schemes
Additional HMO licence
In forceLondon Borough of Tower Hamlets Council Designation for an Area for Additional Licensing for Housing in Multiple Occupation 2023
- Area
The entire district of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The council page also lists 20 ward names, using older names such as 'Bethnal Green' and 'St. Peters'.
- Runs
- 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2029
- Fee
£1,323 for 5 years
New and renewal online £1,323 (or split: Part A £618 + Part B £787.50). Postal £1,550.50 (split £707 + £926). Missing-documents charge £157.50. Floor plans £40 per hour. The fee page shows no 'last updated' date.
- Who needs one
- All HMOs, including flats, occupied by 3 or more persons from 2 or more households, whatever the number of storeys. Includes s.257 HMOs (flats converted before 1991 without building control approval). Also includes flats with 5 or more tenants in purpose-built blocks of 3 or more flats, which fall outside mandatory licensing.
- Exemptions
- Schedule 14 buildings; mandatory HMOs (s.55(2)(a)); properties with a temporary exemption notice (s.62) or an interim or final management order.
- Notes
- Made by the Mayor in Cabinet on 25 October 2023, in force 1 April 2024, and ceases 31 March 2029. It renewed the earlier borough-wide additional scheme that started on 1 April 2019. From 1 April 2024 it also covers multi-let properties in the former selective licensing area. The council's room-size standards (adopted October 2018) are a minimum of 8.5 m² for 1 person and 13 m² for 2 with a separate kitchen. No room under 6.5 m² may be used for sleeping.
Mandatory HMO licence
In forceMandatory HMO licensing (national scheme, Tower Hamlets fees)
- Area
The whole borough (national scheme).
- Fee
£977 for 5 years
New and renewal online £977 (or split: Part A £453.50 + Part B £583.50) plus £68.50 per habitable room. Postal £1,147 (split £584 + £619). Missing-documents charge £112.50.
- Who needs one
- HMOs with 5 or more occupiers in 2 or more households sharing amenities, regardless of storeys. Also flats in blocks of up to 2 flats where a flat has 5 or more people in 2 or more households.
- Exemptions
- Statutory exemptions under Schedule 14, Housing Act 2004.
- Notes
- This is the national scheme, in place since 2006 according to the council page. The council publishes its own page and fees.
Selective licence
EndedLondon Borough of Tower Hamlets Council Designation for an Area for Selective Licensing (2021)
- Area
The council ward areas of Weavers, Whitechapel, and Spitalfields and Banglatown, using pre-22 May 2014 ward boundaries. The amended notice also excludes postcodes E1 1ES, E1 1FA, E1 7HS, E1 8EU, E1 1LP and E1 1DQ.
3 wards, as named in the designation (pre-22 May 2014 ward boundaries (as stated in the designation)):
- Weavers
- Whitechapel
- Spitalfields and Banglatown
- Runs
- 1 October 2021 to 30 September 2026
- Fee
£897 for 5 years
Fees still shown on the council fee page. New online application £897 (or split: Part A £422 + Part B £530). Postal £1,034. Renewal online £747 (renewal split shown as £352 + £371). Missing-documents charge £98. No new applications are accepted after 30 September 2026.
- Who needs one
- Privately rented homes in the designated area occupied by one household, or by at most 2 households of 2 occupiers. HMOs are excluded and covered by the HMO schemes.
- Exemptions
- HMOs licensable under Part 2; tenancies granted by a registered social landlord; properties under an interim or final management order; temporary exemptions (s.86); tenancies exempt under s.79(4) or SI 2006/370; homes in postcodes E1 1ES, E1 1FA, E1 7HS, E1 8EU, E1 1LP and E1 1DQ (amended 30 June 2021).
- Notes
- The scheme ended two weeks before this research. The designation was made on 28 April 2021 (amended 30 June 2021), came into force on 1 October 2021, and 'shall cease to have effect on the 1st October 2026'. The council page says the scheme came to an end on 30 September 2026 and that 'From the 1 October 2026 there will be no selective licensing scheme in the borough'. It renewed the 1 October 2016 to 30 September 2021 scheme. Existing licences stay valid until they expire, and their conditions still apply. Applications made before the end of 30 September 2026 will still be processed. Non-HMO lets in these wards no longer need a new licence. HMOs still need a mandatory or additional licence. The council is 'considering what options exist for a new scheme' and commissioned a private rented stock modelling report due October 2026.
Article 4 for house shares
Tower Hamlets has an Article 4 direction on houses in multiple occupation. Turning a family home into a shared house may need planning permission.
- Area
- Borough_wide: change of use from C3 dwellinghouse to C4 HMO needs planning permission across the whole borough. The direction was made on 24 July 2019 and confirmed on 29 January 2020.
- Takes effect
- 1 January 2021
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' and a Supplemental Enforcement Policy were approved by Cabinet on 15 July 2026 (decision 7995), effective immediately subject to call-in. Both are based on national model policies. The method has 5 steps: MHCLG starting point, Landlord Type adjustment, aggravating and mitigating factors, financial considerations, then totality. Landlord Type is +20% for landlords who, in the 5 years before the conduct, had 6 or more properties or 3 or more HMOs, were a director of a corporate landlord, are a corporate landlord, or have significant experience. It is -20% only for non-corporate landlords with at most 2 properties, at most 1 HMO and very limited experience. Failure to obtain a selective licence starts at £12,000 (£9,600 / £14,400). Failure to obtain an HMO licence starts at £17,000 (£13,600 / £20,400). The statutory maximum is £40,000. There is a 15% discount for prompt payment.
Consultations
No consultation was recorded when we researched Tower Hamlets.
Not yet confirmed
These points were unresolved when we researched Tower Hamlets on 14 October 2026. Check them with the council before you rely on them.
- Not yet confirmed
A new selective scheme may follow. The council says it is 'considering what options exist for a new scheme', with a stock modelling report due October 2026. The Housing Strategy 2026-2036 commits to licensing covering more than 12,600 homes. No consultation has been published yet (none found on talk.towerhamlets.gov.uk). Watch for one.
- Not yet confirmed
The fee page shows no update date. The selective renewal split fees (£352 + £371 = £723) are lower than the full online renewal fee (£747), which looks inconsistent.
- Not yet confirmed
Licence conditions documents for the additional and mandatory schemes were not located on the current site. The landlord guidance PDF is at /Documents/Housing/Housing-provision/Additional_licensing_scheme/TH-Landlord-Guidance-Final.pdf.
Landlord register
Licensing is separate from the national landlord register. Tower Hamlets 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