Additional HMO licensing · London Borough of Lewisham
London Borough of Lewisham Designation for an Area for Additional Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation 2022 (council page name: Additional HMO Licensing)
- Status
- In force
- Runs
- 5 April 2022 to 4 April 2027
- Designated
- 11 March 2020
- Fee
- £500 for each lettable unit, meaning each room someone could live in apart from the shared parts. You pay £250 a unit when you apply and £250 a unit before the licence is issued. Accredited landlords pay £150 a unit for the second part, £400 a unit in all. Eligible housing charities pay only the first part, £250 a unit.
- Applies to
- HMOs anywhere in Lewisham that don't need a mandatory licence. That means homes where three or four people from more than one household share a kitchen, bathroom or toilet, flats in purpose-built blocks shared by three or more people from more than one household, and homes where the landlord lives with more than two lodgers. Converted blocks of flats (section 257 HMOs) are left out. Exempt: homes under a management order or with a temporary exemption, and buildings that aren't HMOs in law.
Our records last verified 18 October 2026 · council designation page · licence conditions
Area covered
The scheme covers the whole of London Borough of Lewisham. Every privately rented property in the borough that meets the scheme’s criteria needs a licence, wherever it is.
London Borough of Lewisham also runs its own address-level lookup: check whether a specific address falls inside the scheme.
What this means for landlords
Additional HMO licensing extends licensing to shared homes below the national 5-person mandatory threshold. If your property in this area houses unrelated sharers, check the scheme’s occupancy criteria. Running a licensable HMO without a licence carries the same penalties as any licensing offence: a civil penalty of up to £40,000 and a rent repayment order of up to 24 months’ rent.
Is your property inside the scheme area?
This checker reflects HouseFile’s records of council licensing designations, not the councils’ live registers. Our records indicate the position at the verification date shown on each result. Schemes are designated, renewed and revoked throughout the year, and postcode-level lookups are approximate near scheme boundaries. Always confirm with the council before letting or buying a property, using the source link on each card. This is general information, not legal advice.
If you hold a licence here, HouseFile can track its renewal date
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