Insights · Guide · October 2026
Croydon selective licensing: a guide for buy-to-let landlords
Since 25 September 2026, most privately rented flats in 14 Croydon wards need a selective licence from Croydon Council. The scheme runs for five years, and renting out a flat that should be licensed without one is a criminal offence.
In short
If you let a flat in Croydon, three things matter now:
- Check your ward. The scheme covers 14 named wards, not the whole borough.
- Apply if you are covered. A five-year licence costs £800 per flat, less any discounts.
- Keep to the conditions. A licence brings ongoing duties: safety certificates, six-monthly inspections, tenant referencing, and records you must produce within 14 days if asked.
Whose job is it?
The licence is your obligation as the landlord of the flat. As managing agent for the building, we can supply the block information you need for the application, but we cannot apply for you unless you separately appoint us to manage your letting.
Croydon also started a borough-wide additional HMO licensing scheme on the same date, for shared homes of three or four people.
Does it apply to your flat?
Your flat needs a selective licence if it is privately rented, is in one of the 14 wards, and is not exempt. Use the council’s postcode checker to confirm your ward: ward boundaries do not follow postcode districts.
Lettings covered: a flat let to one household (such as a family), to a single tenant, or to two people sharing.
Not covered (exempt)
- Flats already licensed as an HMO, under the mandatory scheme (five or more people) or the new additional HMO scheme (three or four people from two or more households)
- A flat lived in by its own long leaseholder (lease over 21 years). Owner-occupiers need nothing
- Lettings to a family member
- Tenancies granted by a housing association or other registered social landlord
- Approved student accommodation, and buildings regulated under other law, such as care homes
- Flats under a management order or temporary exemption notice, or otherwise exempt under the Housing Act 2004
Not sure? Ask the council’s licensing team before you let, not after.
The 14 wards
- Addiscombe East
- Addiscombe West
- Bensham Manor
- Broad Green
- Fairfield
- Norbury and Pollards Hill
- Norbury Park
- Selhurst
- South Croydon
- South Norwood
- Thornton Heath
- Waddon
- West Thornton
- Woodside
How to apply
Apply online at propertylicensing.croydon.gov.uk, the portal run for the council by The Oyster Partnership. You pay Part A when you apply and Part B when the licence is granted.
| Licence or discount | Part A, on application | Part B, on grant | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard selective licence | £480 | £320 | £800 |
| One-year licence (where the council has compliance concerns) | £480 | £64 | £544 |
| EPC rated B or above | £480 | £270 | £750 |
| Accredited landlord (LLAS, NRLA or UKALA) | £480 | £220 | £700 |
| Agent in ARLA, RICS or Safeagent | £480 | £220 | £700 |
| Second and later flats in the same block, same owner, applied for together | £380 | £320 | £700 |
Discounts are confirmed only once the full application and documents are in, and are lost if the council has to ask twice for missing documents or has sent a warning letter for failing to license. Part A is not refunded if an application is refused, rejected or withdrawn. If an application is incomplete you have 14 days to fix it, or it is rejected and you pay Part A again.
Have these ready before you start
- Gas safety certificate (if the flat has gas)
- Electrical installation condition report (EICR)
- Energy performance certificate (EPC)
- Floor plan with room sizes and facilities
- Details of the occupants
- Your details and proof of address, and details of any letting or managing agent
- Details of everyone with an interest in the flat, including the freeholder and any mortgage lender
- Evidence of accreditation or membership, if claiming a discount
Help with the form
The council’s licensing team will take you through the form by phone on 020 8050 0276 (Monday to Thursday 9am to 5pm, Friday 9am to 4pm) or by email at croydon@oysterpartnership.com.
Licence conditions
Once licensed, you must meet the conditions for the whole five years and produce most records to the council within 14 days of a request.
| Area | What you must do | When |
|---|---|---|
| Tenancy terms | Give tenants written terms with contacts for repairs, emergencies, pest control and the person responsible for the common parts | At the start of each tenancy |
| Documents for tenants | Give a copy of the licence, EPC, gas safety certificate and EICR | At the start of each tenancy; EICR to existing tenants within 28 days of a new test |
| Referencing | Obtain and keep references for every new occupier | Before any tenancy starts |
| Deposits | Protect the deposit and give the prescribed information | Within 30 days of receipt |
| Inspections | Inspect the flat and any outside space, record findings and act on them, including overcrowding | At least every 6 months |
| Gas | Keep a valid gas safety certificate with no gap, and send a copy to the council | Annually; to the council within 14 days of issue |
| Electrics | EICR by a qualified person; keep supplied appliances and furniture safe | At least every 5 years |
| Alarms | Smoke alarm on every storey used as living space; carbon monoxide alarm where there is a fixed combustion appliance; test at each new tenancy | Ongoing |
| Anti-social behaviour | Give a 24-hour contact; write to the tenant about complaints, then follow the escalation steps | First letter within 7 days of a complaint |
| Complaints | Reply in writing to complaints about disrepair, waste or pests | Within 14 days |
| Waste | Tell tenants about bin days, recycling and bulky waste; deal with dumped items | At the start of each tenancy; warning letter within 14 days |
| Changes | Tell the council about changes of ownership, licence holder, manager or relevant convictions | Within 14 days |
| Access | Allow council officers to inspect | On at least 24 hours’ notice |
If you appoint a letting agent to carry out some conditions, you must get a signed Declaration of Management from them and send it to the council within 14 days of their appointment. You remain responsible as licence holder either way.
Penalties
Letting a flat that needs a licence without one, or breaching a licence condition, is an offence under section 95 of the Housing Act 2004. The council can respond in several ways:
- A civil penalty of up to £40,000 per offence. The cap rose from £30,000 on 1 May 2026. Croydon’s conditions document, dated February 2026, still quotes £30,000.
- Prosecution in the magistrates’ court, with an unlimited fine, or a simple caution.
- A rent repayment order. Tenants or the council can reclaim rent paid during the unlicensed period, now up to 24 months from 1 May 2026.
- Losing the licence, or a shorter licence. Enforcement can also affect whether you are a “fit and proper” person to hold a licence in future.
The council says it will not penalise people who are actively trying to resolve a problem. Tenants and neighbours can report unlicensed flats online, and the council publishes a public register of licences.
Leasehold flats in buildings we manage
The licence covers your flat and your letting; we manage the building’s common parts for the freeholder. Each of us has a different role.
| Responsibility | You, as landlord of the flat | Us, as block managing agent |
|---|---|---|
| Applying and paying for the licence | Yes | No. The fee is your cost, not a service charge item |
| Gas, EICR, alarms and repairs inside your flat | Yes | No |
| Tenant referencing, deposits and six-monthly flat inspections | Yes, or your letting agent | No |
| Communal fire alarms, emergency lighting and the fire risk assessment of the common parts | No | Yes, for the freeholder |
| Communal bin stores, cleaning and pest control in the common parts | Report problems to us | Yes |
| Anti-social behaviour by your tenant | Yes, under the licence’s escalation steps | We tell you about complaints we receive |
Information we can give you
- The freeholder’s name and address, which the application asks for as an “interested person”
- Our name, address and emergency contact number as the agent responsible for the common parts. Your tenants’ written terms must include this
- Bin collection arrangements for the building, for the waste information you must give tenants
- The current common-parts fire risk assessment, if the council asks to see it
We can only share information about your own flat and the common parts. We cannot tell you whether other flats are licensed or share other leaseholders’ details.
Our details for your application
MY Facilities Management Ltd, trading as BlockGenie
Unit 1, The Exchange, 6 Scarbrook Road, Croydon CR0 1UH
020 8175 4986 · hello@blockgenie.co.uk
Check your lease too. Many leases require you to notify the freeholder of any subletting, and some require consent or a registration fee. A selective licence does not replace those obligations.
Action checklist
- Check your flat’s ward with the council’s postcode checker
- Confirm the letting is not exempt and is not an HMO (three or more people from two or more households need an HMO licence instead)
- Make sure the gas safety certificate, EICR and EPC are current
- Check smoke and carbon monoxide alarms meet the conditions
- Ask us for the freeholder’s details and our common-parts contact details
- Apply online, pay Part A and claim any discounts you qualify for
- Send any missing documents within 14 days of a request
- Pay Part B when the licence is granted
- Give your tenants the licence, written terms, certificates and waste information
- Put six-monthly inspections in the diary and keep written records
- If a letting agent manages the flat, send their signed Declaration of Management to the council within 14 days
- Check your lease for subletting notice or consent requirements
Sources
- Croydon Council: about our new housing licensing schemes (start date 25 September 2026)
- Croydon Council: Selective Licensing Scheme 2026 (wards and exemptions)
- Croydon Council: licence fees and discounts
- Croydon Council: applying for a licence
- Croydon Council: selective licence conditions
- Housing Act 2004, section 249A (civil penalties)
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Check your own circumstances with the council or a housing solicitor. Last checked 19 October 2026.
Own a flat in a building we manage?
Ask us for the block information you need for your application. We reply within one working day.