Additional HMO licensing · Medway Council
Medway Council Designation for an Area for Additional Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation 2026
- Status
- Starts soon
- Dates
- 4 January 2027 to 3 January 2032
- Designated
- 22 September 2026
- Fee
- £1,600 per licence: £830 when you apply and £770 when the licence is approved. One discount at most, applied once the council has checked your application: 10% for accredited landlords (£1,440), 25% for registered charities housing vulnerable tenants (£1,200), or 12.5% for several properties in the same freehold (£1,400). The council's licensing page shows £840 for an HMO licence and £1,600 for a selective licence, the other way round from its consultation and Cabinet papers, so check the fee when you apply. You can apply from 4 January 2027 and not before.
- Applies to
- HMOs in the six named wards that don't need a mandatory licence, usually homes shared by three or four people from two or more households who share a kitchen, bathroom or toilet. Exempt: buildings the law says aren't HMOs, HMOs under a management order or with a temporary exemption, and converted blocks of flats (section 257 HMOs). Strood North & Frindsbury has selective licensing only.
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:
- Chatham Central & Brompton
- Fort Pitt
- Gillingham North
- Gillingham South
- Luton
- Watling
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.
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