Elmbridge: five-year HMO licences and routine inspections
Elmbridge requires a licence for an HMO occupied by five or more people from more than one household who share facilities. The council describes five-year licences, routine inspections and civil penalties, but the fee year and current additional, selective and Article 4 positions need confirmation.
The licensing threshold
Elmbridge defines an HMO as a property let to at least three unrelated tenants forming more than one household and sharing facilities. A licence is required at five or more people from more than one household sharing facilities. The council describes the application as a five-year HMO licence and says it inspects all known HMOs routinely.
Application fee and inspection
Applications can be made through the council's online HMO licence service or PDF form. The application page displays a £600 fee and a £50 discount for a recognised landlord association or accreditation scheme, but the fee year is UNVERIFIED - could not confirm on council website. Do not treat those figures as current without checking the council's fee schedule.
Standards and enforcement
Elmbridge links fire-safety and amenity guidance, requires fixed electrical installations to be tested at least every five years and uses HHSRS for complaint inspections. Action can include warnings, formal notices, prosecution, civil penalties, Rent Repayment Orders and banning orders. Operating an unlicensed HMO or breaching conditions may attract a civil penalty up to £30,000 or an unlimited fine.
The current additional and selective licensing position is UNVERIFIED - could not confirm on council website. The planning policy page links to an Article 4 page that returned 404 during this check, so an HMO-specific Article 4 direction is also UNVERIFIED - could not confirm on council website. Private Sector Housing can be contacted on 01372 474 624 or pshousing@elmbridge.gov.uk.
Verify current details via Elmbridge Borough Council's HMOs, health and safety of properties, enforcement policy, planning policy, HMO application form and HMO register pages. Illustrative guide - scheme boundaries and dates change; general information, not legal advice.
Renewal tracked from expiry, reminders from 60 days out, proof of service to tenants logged. Knows the 2-month early-renewal rule that keeps your date fixed.
Five years goes quicker than you think. Kept remembers so you don't have to - including the 28-day duty to give tenants a copy.
Expiry tracked from the certificate details you confirm - band E is the current minimum for most domestic private lets unless exempt, and proposed changes are flagged only when they become law.
30-day protection window tracked from the day the money lands - not the tenancy date - with prescribed information logged.
Check dates and follow-up dates for time-limited permissions, stored against each tenant.
Smoke alarms every storey, CO alarms where required, checked and dated at the start of every tenancy.
A one-off duty for tenancies that existed on 1 May 2026. Who was served, when, and how - the £7,000 question, answered with a dated record.
Preparation and export support for the future official registration process - clearly marked as planned.
Selective licensing (ordinary lets): UNVERIFIED - could not confirm on council website. See the local picture above - every other duty applies exactly as it does nationwide.
Add a postcode and Kept resolves the council, location and local context automatically.
Planned preparation and export support for the government's regional PRS Database rollout.