Camden HMO Licence Refused? How to Appeal to the First-Tier Tribunal

Why Camden Refuses a Licence

Camden can refuse an HMO licence application for several reasons under the Housing Act 2004. The most common:

• The proposed licence holder or manager fails the fit and proper person test (unspent convictions for fraud, violence, drugs, sexual offences, or previous housing law breaches)
• The property does not meet basic safety and amenity standards and the applicant cannot demonstrate a realistic plan to bring it up to standard
• The proposed management arrangements are not satisfactory — for instance, an overseas owner with no UK-based managing agent
• The application is incomplete after repeated requests for missing documents

A refusal is not informal. Camden issues a formal Notice of Decision under Schedule 5 of the Housing Act 2004, setting out the reasons. Before that, you receive a Draft Decision Notice giving you a 14-day window to make written representations.

The Two-Stage Process

Stage 1 — Representations (14 days). When Camden issues the Schedule 5 draft notice proposing to refuse (or to grant with conditions you disagree with), you have 14 days from the date of service to submit written representations to the Private Sector Housing team. This is your chance to provide additional evidence, correct misunderstandings, or propose alternative management arrangements. Camden must consider your representations before making the final decision.

Stage 2 — Tribunal appeal (28 days). If Camden's final Notice of Decision still refuses the licence, or grants it with conditions you consider unreasonable, you have 28 days beginning with the date specified in the notice as the date the decision was made to file an appeal with the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber). The tribunal may allow a late appeal for good reason, but contacting Camden informally does not stop or extend the deadline.

Filing the Tribunal Appeal

Appeals go to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) for the London region. You file using the tribunal's standard application form, setting out the grounds of your appeal and attaching Camden's Notice of Decision and any supporting evidence.

The tribunal can:

• Confirm Camden's decision (the refusal stands)
• Reverse the decision and direct Camden to grant the licence
• Vary Camden's decision, including the terms of a licence

Tribunal hearings are usually held at the tribunal's London venue. You can represent yourself or use a solicitor. The process is relatively informal compared to county court proceedings, but you need evidence — the tribunal will not simply accept your assertion that Camden was wrong.

Licence Variations

Not every disagreement requires an appeal. If you hold a granted licence but need to change something — a different managing agent, a change to the permitted occupancy number, altered room layouts — you apply to Camden for a licence variation under section 69 of the Housing Act 2004. Administrative variations (change of agent, updated contact details) carry no fee in Camden.

If you want to increase the maximum occupancy and Camden refuses, that refusal follows the same representations and appeal route as a licence refusal.

What to Do While Waiting

If your initial application was duly made (complete application plus Part 1 fee paid), you have statutory protection under section 72(4)(b) while it is being processed, even if Camden later refuses it. You are not committing the offence of operating an unlicensed HMO during this period.

However, once the refusal is final and any appeal period expires without an appeal being filed, that protection ends. At that point, continuing to let the property as an HMO without a licence is an offence carrying an unlimited fine on prosecution or a civil penalty of up to £40,000, plus potential rent repayment order exposure of up to 24 months of rent for qualifying offences committed on or after 1 May 2026.

Avoiding Refusal in the First Place

Most refusals come down to incomplete applications or fit and proper person failures. Assembling every required document before you start the portal submission — EICR, gas safety certificate, metric floor plans, fire alarm certificate, EPC, tenancy agreement samples — and verifying that every named individual passes the fit and proper criteria prevents the most common causes.

The Camden Landlord Licensing Guide covers the complete document checklist and the fit and proper person requirements in detail, so you can submit a complete application that does not trigger requests for missing information.

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