Need to licence your rental property in Southwark?
Nineteen of Southwark's 23 wards are under selective licensing and the whole borough is under additional licensing. Find out which licence you need and what it costs.
Southwark property licensing at a glance
- Selective licence fee
- £945
- Additional HMO licence fee
- £1,433
- Mandatory HMO licence fee
- £1,653.50 + £110 per extra bedroom
- Selective wards
- 19 of 23
- Licence length
- Up to 5 years
- Barnab fee
- £150 + VAT
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Southwark property licensing questions
If your privately rented property is in one of Southwark's 19 selective licensing wards and is let to a single household or two unrelated sharers, yes. Larger shared houses need an additional or mandatory HMO licence instead. The council's interactive map confirms the ward for any address, or Barnab can check it for you.
£945 per property, correct as of July 2026, for a licence that normally lasts five years. Additional HMO licences are £1,433 and mandatory HMO licences £1,653.50 plus £110 for each bedroom above five. Section 257 HMO licences are free.
Nineteen of the borough's 23 wards. The first designation, from 1 March 2022, covers Champion Hill, Faraday, Goose Green, Newington and St Giles. The second, from 1 November 2023, covers North Walworth, Nunhead & Queens Road, Old Kent Road, Peckham, Camberwell Green, Chaucer, Dulwich Hill, Dulwich Wood, London Bridge & West Bermondsey, Peckham Rye, Rotherhithe, Rye Lane, South Bermondsey and Surrey Docks.
A borough-wide scheme, running from 1 March 2022 for five years, that licenses HMOs too small for mandatory licensing: houses shared by three or four unrelated people with shared facilities, flats in multiple occupation in purpose-built blocks of three or more flats, and section 257 converted buildings that do not meet 1991 Building Regulations.
Usually five years. Where the council has evidence of poor management or other housing problems it issues a one- or three-year licence instead.
Letting a licensable property without a licence is an offence. The council can prosecute, with an unlimited fine, or impose a civil penalty of up to £30,000, and tenants or the council can apply for a rent repayment order recovering up to 12 months' rent.
Selective Licence
Your tenants are either 1-2 people or a family.
Additional HMO Licence
Your tenants are 3-4 people from more than 1 household.
Mandatory HMO Licence
Your tenants are 5 or more people from more than 1 household.
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About Property Licences
What is the situation in Southwark?
Southwark runs all three property licensing schemes at once. Mandatory HMO licensing applies borough-wide to houses shared by five or more people from two or more households. Additional licensing, also borough-wide since 1 March 2022, catches the smaller shared houses. Selective licensing covers every other privately rented home in 19 of the borough's 23 wards, under two designations that started on 1 March 2022 and 1 November 2023 and each run for five years. The practical result: almost every privately rented property in Southwark needs a licence of some kind.
Scheme details and fees verified on 27 October 2026 against Southwark Council's property licensing pages and the London Property Licensing scheme summary for Southwark. Designations and fees change; check the date before relying on a figure.
Which licence
Which licence does my Southwark property need?
Five or more people from two or more households sharing a kitchen, bathroom or toilet?
Mandatory HMO licence, anywhere in the borough. £1,653.50 plus £110 per bedroom above five.
Three or four unrelated people sharing facilities, or a flat in multiple occupation in a block of three or more flats?
Additional HMO licence, anywhere in the borough. £1,433.
A building converted into three or more self-contained flats that does not meet the 1991 Building Regulations, under single ownership?
Additional licence as a section 257 HMO. No fee.
A single household, or two unrelated sharers, in one of the 19 selective licensing wards?
Selective licence. £945.
A single household in Vauxhall, Oval, Borough & Bankside or Dulwich Village?
No licence needed unless it is an HMO: these four wards are outside the selective designations. Check the council map, because ward boundaries matter street by street.
Use Southwark's interactive map to confirm the ward for your address, or ask Barnab to check it.
Wards
Southwark selective licensing wards
| Designation | Started | Wards |
|---|---|---|
| Selective licensing 1 | 1 March 2022, five years | Champion Hill, Faraday, Goose Green, Newington, St Giles |
| Selective licensing 2 | 1 November 2023, five years | North Walworth, Nunhead & Queens Road, Old Kent Road, Peckham, Camberwell Green, Chaucer, Dulwich Hill, Dulwich Wood, London Bridge & West Bermondsey, Peckham Rye, Rotherhithe, Rye Lane, South Bermondsey, Surrey Docks |
| Additional licensing | 1 March 2022, five years | Whole borough |
| Mandatory HMO licensing | National scheme | Whole borough |
The first designation is due to end in early 2027 unless Southwark renews it, which councils normally consult on in the final year. If you are letting in one of those five wards, expect a renewal consultation during 2026 and a new designation rather than the scheme simply lapsing.
Fees
How much does a property licence cost in Southwark?
| Licence | Council fee | Lasts |
|---|---|---|
| Selective licence | £945 | Up to 5 years |
| Additional HMO licence | £1,433 | Up to 5 years |
| Mandatory HMO licence | £1,653.50 + £110 per bedroom above five | Up to 5 years |
| Section 257 HMO licence | No charge | Up to 5 years |
Council fees are correct as of July 2026. Southwark offers a discount on selective licence fees for landlords who sign up to its Gold Standard Charter; the council publishes the current amount. Barnab's fee for preparing and submitting the application is separate and shown in the plan picker below.
How to apply
How to apply for a Southwark property licence
- 1
Confirm the licence type
Ward, number of occupants and households, and whether the building is a converted block. Getting this wrong means paying the wrong fee and starting again.
- 2
Gather the documents
Gas safety certificate, electrical installation condition report, a floor plan with room sizes, fire detection details, the tenancy agreement and the manager's details. Southwark applies the government's minimum room sizes and its own amenity standards.
- 3
Apply on Southwark's property licensing portal
The council's portal takes the application and the fee, which is paid in two parts: a processing fee on application and the balance when the licence is granted. Barnab prepares the application and uploads it for you.
- 4
Inspection and conditions
The council may inspect before or after granting. Licences carry conditions on management, safety certificates and occupancy. Breaching a condition is itself an offence.
- 5
Renew before expiry
Licences last up to five years. Renewal is a fresh application, so diarise it; letting past expiry without a licence is unlicensed letting.
Planning
Licensing is not planning permission
A property licence does not change the planning status of the building. An HMO for seven or more people needs planning permission as a sui generis use anywhere, and if Southwark makes an Article 4 Direction removing the permitted development right for small HMOs in an area, converting a family home to a shared house there needs planning permission too. Our HMO planning permission guide explains the C3, C4 and sui generis rules.
Letting in Lambeth as well? See our guide to Lambeth property licensing, which works the same way but with different wards and fees.