Does this property need a licence?
90 of 296 English councils currently run a licensing scheme, with more launching under the Renters' Rights Act 2025.
Same check. Two very different questions.
For landlords and agents
Do I need a licence, and what happens if I do not have one?
There is no national register to check, designations are drawn street by street, and they change constantly. Get the property-specific verdict, the scheme dates and fees, your exposure, and the order to do things in.
Free scheme check · £7.99 full report
For tenants
Should my home have been licensed, and can I claim rent back?
If your landlord let a property that needed a licence without one, that is a criminal offence and you can apply for a Rent Repayment Order of up to 24 months' rent. The tribunal must be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt, so the evidence is what matters.
Free scheme check · £29 evidence report
£40,000
Max civil penalty per unlicensed property
24 months
Rent a tenant can reclaim (RRO)
90
Councils with a live licensing scheme
3 nations
England, Wales & Scotland rules covered
What PRSCheck does
Property licensing in the UK is a patchwork. On top of the England-wide rules for houses in multiple occupation, individual councils run their own selective and additional licensing schemes, often covering just a few streets or wards. There is no single national register a landlord can check, the schemes change constantly, and the boundaries can run down the middle of a road.
The result is that thousands of landlords are letting property that needs a licence without realising it, and only find out when a council enforcement officer, or a tenant claiming their rent back, gets in touch. With penalties now reaching £40,000 per property and rent repayment orders of up to 24 months, that is an expensive way to learn the rules.
PRSCheck fixes that. We have mapped every selective and additional licensing scheme in England to the exact council and area it covers, and combined it with the national HMO rules and the registration regimes in Wales and Scotland. Enter a postcode and we show you instantly whether that area has a scheme. Answer a couple of questions about the tenancy and our £7.99 report tells you precisely which licence your property needs, what it costs, what you are exposed to if you get it wrong, and exactly what to do next.
The three types of property licence
Most landlords only think about HMO licences. There are actually three regimes, and any combination can apply to one property.
Mandatory HMO
Applies everywhere in England
Any property let to 5 or more people forming 2 or more households who share a kitchen, bathroom or toilet. No storey rule since 2018.
Additional HMO
Where the council designates it
Extends HMO licensing to smaller shared homes, typically 3 to 4 sharers, that fall below the mandatory threshold.
Selective
Where the council designates it
Covers ordinary private rented homes, not just HMOs, in a designated area. A single family let still needs one if it is in the zone.
How the licence check works
Most landlords have no idea their street is covered until enforcement arrives. Three steps to certainty.
Enter your postcode
We identify your licensing authority and every selective, additional and mandatory HMO scheme that could apply.
Tell us about the let
How many people live there and how many households. That determines exactly which licence rules bite.
Get your report
A clear verdict on each licence type, scheme dates and fees, your penalty exposure, and a step-by-step action plan.
What's in your £7.99 report
A verdict on every licence type
Selective, additional and mandatory HMO, decided for your exact property and occupancy.
Scheme dates and fees
When each scheme runs, what the council charges, and links to the official designation.
Your penalty exposure
The specific civil penalty, rent repayment order and prosecution risk you carry if unlicensed.
A clear action plan
Exactly what to do next, in order, so you get compliant fast.
Who uses PRSCheck
Landlords
Confirm your existing lets are licensed, and check before you buy a new rental or change the tenancy.
Letting & managing agents
Check licensing across a portfolio and avoid managing an unlicensed property on a client's behalf.
Property buyers
Find out during due diligence whether a buy-to-let you are purchasing sits in a licensing area.
Tenants
Check whether the home you rent should be licensed, and claim rent back with a Rent Repayment Order if it was not.
The rules are tightening in 2026
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 raised the maximum civil penalty to £40,000, extended rent repayment orders to 24 months, and is rolling out a national PRS Database that every landlord must join. Councils are also using new powers to launch selective licensing schemes far faster than before. If you let property, staying on top of licensing has never mattered more.
For local authorities
Run a council housing team? PRSCheck also powers PRS enforcement.
Automated compliance screening, HMO detection and enforcement case management for local authority housing teams preparing for the PRS Database.
Check your property in seconds
Free scheme check. £7.99 for the full property-specific report.
🏛️ Government-backed data: every result is built from official local authority licensing designations, ONS council boundaries and UK housing legislation (Housing Act 2004).