Licence Applications and Licence Fees
There will be a grace period of 90 days from the date a property becomes licensable, to allow applicants to complete the online application form, upload associated certificates, pay the licence fee. Any licensable property for which a fully completed application is not received, more than 90 days after a property becomes licensable, will be deemed non-compliant, attracting increased part 1 and part 2 payments, to cover the additional work required to identify and trace non-compliant properties.
Before applying for a licence
You need to inform in writing, people with an interest in the property, that you are planning to make an application for a licence. This may include:
- your mortgage lender for the property to be licenced
- any other owners of the property
- anyone who manages your property
- the proposed licence holder (if that is not you)
- anyone who would be bound by a condition in the licence
- any tenants or long leaseholders of the property if the lease or tenancy is for more than three year
Application Form
An online application form and pay site will be provided via this web page on the 15 February 2026, when the scheme becomes active.
In preparations for your application and for the application to be valid, please ensure you have the following documents available and up to date for the 15 February 2026
- a valid and in-date Gas Safety certification (GSC)
- Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR)
- Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)
- A utility bill or bank statement for the applicant’s home address no more than 3 months old
- a copy of either a picture driving licence or passport
Application Fee
When you submit your application, you will be asked to pay a non-refundable, Part 1 (Administrative) charge of £276 per property with the licence application. (see discounts below for multiple applications)
Where a fully completed application including all supporting certificates and documentation is not received within 90 days of a property becoming licensable, the Part 1 (Administrative) charge increases to £476 per property. – this means that a property which is licensable at the start of the scheme on the 15th February 2026, is required to have a fully completed application submitted by May 16, 2026, to avoid the increased administrative charge being applied
The remaining, Part 2 (Maintenance) charge, (£699 per property for a standard licence) is payable on the offer of a licence. Please see the table below for your applicable charge. Any applicable discount or increase in charge will be applied before your draft licence is offered to you.
Surrender of licence
Where a licence is surrendered, as a property is sold before the end of the scheme or it becomes no longer licensable or the licenced person changes, a pro rata rebate of the maintenance charge of the licence fee can be requested, but only if the council is notified as soon as possible after the change and within 1 calendar month of the change. Beyond this period any eligibility to the rebate will be forfeit (from date of property transfer or end of tenancy).
Licensing during the period of the declaration
Where a licence is applied for by a new owner / manager following the surrender of a previous licence, or a premise becomes licensable for the first time during the scheme, the maintenance charge will be charged at a pro-rata rate to cover the remainder of the licensable period. Please contact the Selective Licensing Team prior to your application if you need further advice or clarification. landlordlicensing@rotherham.gov.uk
Duration of the Licence
Please note, Declarations usually remain in force for 5 Years. However, the licence will run from the date your licence is issued to the end of the scheme, 14 February 2031 or earlier, if the scheme is ended sooner. No refunds will be available if the scheme is closed early.
Summary of fees
Selective Licensing 2026 to 2031 Licence fee |
Part 1 (administrative charge) |
Part 2 (Maintenance charge) |
Total Licence fee |
| Licence | |||
| Standard licence fee | £276.00 | £699.00 | £975.00 |
| Non-Compliant applicant, where a complete application, including required supporting information is not received within 90 days of the property becoming licensable | £476.00 | £849.00 | £1325.00 |
| Loss of entitlement to any discount if non-compliant application, or false or misleading information is provided on application. | |||
| Discounted Licence Fees | |||
| Landlords who received the 'better property rebates' in the 2020 to 2025 selective licensing scheme receive an automatic discount of 37% from the maintenance charge for all properties, where the application is in the same name as the previous (qualifying) application. | £276.00 | £441.00 | £717.00 |
| 5% discount off the maintenance charge for fully completed applications received with all required supporting documents within 90 days of the property becoming licensable. Where no additional work is required to process the application. | £276.00 | £655.00 | £941.00 |
| Flats within the same building. Pay one administrative charge and one full maintenance charge, then 35% of the maintenance charge for all other flats within that building. | £276.00 | £699 plus additional flats at £244.65 | Variable |
| Owners of larger portfolios pay full administrative charge on 3 properties then 35% of the administrative charge on additional properties. This is not available to agents managing properties not in their ownership. | £276.00 x 3, then £96.60 per additional property | £699 | Variable |
| 12-month Direct Debit available on Maintenance charge (If within 3 years of start of scheme). | £22 one off admin fee | ||
| Variations to licences | Free | Free | Free |
| Temporary exemptions | Free | Free | Free |
On receipt, applications will be assessed for completeness. If incomplete, applicants will be advised what is required to complete the application. The application will not be eligible for the 5% discount off the Maintenance Charge.
Where an incomplete application is not resolved within 4 weeks of the applicant being notified of errors or omissions, the application will be rejected without assessment. The Part 1 (Administrative) charge will be payable again with any resubmitted application.
