Selective licensing · Luton Borough Council
The Luton Borough Council Designation of an Area for Selective Licensing 2023 (council page name: Selective licensing; the designation's own citation paragraph wrongly reads 'designation for an area for additional licensing of houses in multiple occupation 2023')
- Status
- In force
- Runs
- 1 June 2026 to 4 February 2029
- Designated
- 25 October 2023
- Fee
- The council isn't taking applications at the moment. Its full fee, set in 2023, is up to £488 per property, worked out from the months the scheme has left: £122 when you apply and £366 when the licence is granted. One discount of £122 is available, for accredited landlords or for a property with an EPC of C or above. The council says it will revise these fees to reflect current costs. The £150 early bird fee ended on 31 August 2026.
- Applies to
- Every privately rented home in the town centre and Park Town area let to one family or to no more than two unrelated people. The area is Luton's South ward as it was before the May 2023 ward changes. Some roads are only partly covered, including Crawley Green Road, Dumfries Street, Dunstable Road, London Road, New Bedford Road, Wellington Street and Windsor Street, so check the council's road list. Small HMOs in the area need an additional HMO licence instead, and large ones a mandatory licence. Exempt: homes let by a housing association or other social landlord, homes under a management order or with a temporary exemption, and the kinds of letting exempt nationally. The council's application system is down, and it says it won't take action over a missing licence until applications reopen and landlords have had a fair chance to apply.
Our records last verified 18 October 2026 · council designation page · licence conditions
Area covered
The designation covers these wards, as they were drawn when the scheme was made:
- South
What this means for landlords
Selective licensing applies to privately rented homes of any size in the designated area, including single lets. Letting an unlicensed property inside the area can mean 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.
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