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Licensing in Waverley

Waverley has no selective or additional licensing scheme in force.

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Check an address in Waverley

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 only24

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, Waverley fees)

    Area

    The whole Borough of Waverley: 'Waverley operates a mandatory HMO licensing scheme that covers the entire Borough'.

    Fee

    Published standard fee: £807.70

    Council HMO licence page (no update date shown): new application £807.70 per property; renewal after five years £710.50 per property; 11 to 15 units an additional £30.60; each unit above 15 an additional £12.20; £25 discount for members of an approved landlords association; late application an additional £100. Fees are paid at the end of the online application.

    Who needs one
    Properties rented to five or more people forming more than one household who share toilet, bathroom or kitchen facilities; each such property needs its own licence (council HMO licence page).
    Apply on the council’s website
    How we checked this

    Licences normally last five years; the council may issue a shorter licence, for example after a late application. Queries: 01483 523372 or privatesectorhousing@waverley.gov.uk. The public register is online at online.waverley.gov.uk (a banner said it was temporarily unavailable for maintenance). The page states that 'no other licensing schemes are in operation or are being proposed'. The council's HMO standards document (V3.1) is linked from the landlords pages.

    Sources

Article 4 for house shares

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

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.

Joint Civil Financial Penalty Policy 2026 for Guildford Borough Council and Waverley Borough Council. The Guildford & Waverley Joint Executive Committee on 6 October 2026 (item 8, modgov.waverley.gov.uk) resolved that 'The new Joint Housing Standards Enforcement Policy and Joint Civil Financial Penalty Policy for Guildford Borough Council and Waverley Borough Council be adopted', with powers under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 delegated to the Joint Director of Regulatory Services. The policy covers £7,000 breaches and £40,000 breaches and offences; failure to obtain an HMO licence (s.72(1)) starts at £17,000 (£13,600 / £17,000 / £20,400 by landlord type), maximum £40,000; failure to obtain a selective licence (s.95) is also covered. A 15% discount applies for prompt full payment. The previous Private Sector Housing Enforcement Policy (latest publication January 2022, £30,000 maximum and a scoring matrix) is still linked from the council's landlord advice page; its operative date for offences after 6 October 2026 is not stated in the decision.

Waverley's civil penalty policy

Consultations

We found no consultations when we researched Waverley.

Not yet confirmed

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

  • Not yet confirmed

    Confirm from which date the Joint Civil Financial Penalty Policy 2026 (adopted 6 October 2026) applies, and whether the council website will replace the January 2022 enforcement policy it still links.

  • Not yet confirmed

    The HMO licence page shows no update date; confirm the fees are the current 2026/27 amounts.

  • Not yet confirmed

    Surrey local government reorganisation: Mole Valley's published notice says two unitary councils, East Surrey Council and West Surrey Council, 'will replace the existing 12 councils in April 2027' (https://www.molevalley.gov.uk/privacy-notice-local-government-reorganisation/); this council falls in West Surrey. HMO licensing will then be run by the new council; check its fees and any new schemes after that date.

Landlord register

The national landlord register is separate from licensing. Waverley 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