Camden Selective Licensing: Does Camden Have a Selective Licensing Scheme?

If you let a property to a single household in Camden and you've heard that some London boroughs require a licence for every rented home, you'll want to know whether Camden does the same. The short answer: it doesn't.

Camden Has No Selective Licensing Scheme

As of October 2026, Camden Council does not operate a selective licensing scheme under Part 3 of the Housing Act 2004. Selective licensing targets all privately rented properties in a designated area — including single-household lets that would normally fall outside HMO rules. Boroughs like Newham, Waltham Forest and Barking & Dagenham run these schemes. Camden doesn't.

If your Camden property is rented to a single household (a couple, a family, or one person), you currently need no property licence from Camden Council.

What Camden Does Run

Camden's licensing obligations apply only to houses in multiple occupation:

• Mandatory HMO licensing for properties with five or more people in two or more households sharing amenities — this is a national obligation
• Additional HMO licensing under Camden's borough-wide scheme (December 2025 to December 2030) covering properties with three or four people in two or more households, plus certain section 257 converted blocks

Both schemes are HMO-specific. A standard buy-to-let with one tenant or one family is outside their scope entirely.

Could Camden Introduce Selective Licensing?

It's possible. The 2024 General Approval removed the requirement for councils to get Secretary of State permission before introducing large selective licensing schemes. Before December 2024, any council wanting to cover more than 20% of its area or 20% of its private rented stock needed central government sign-off. That restriction is gone.

Camden now has autonomous power to designate a selective scheme of any size, provided it meets the statutory criteria (antisocial behaviour, poor housing conditions, migration, deprivation or high crime) and runs a minimum 10-week public consultation.

Camden consulted on expanded licensing in 2024–2025 but introduced only the renewed additional HMO scheme. A future selective scheme remains under policy review but is not on any published timeline.

Which London Boroughs Do Run Selective Licensing?

Several London boroughs operate selective schemes that catch single-let properties. Newham was the first to go borough-wide. Waltham Forest, Barking & Dagenham, Tower Hamlets and others have all introduced selective licensing in designated areas. Each borough sets its own fees and conditions — there's no London-wide standard.

If you own in one of these boroughs alongside your Camden properties, you'll need a selective licence for the property in that borough even though your Camden single-let doesn't need one. Licensing obligations attach to the local authority area where the property is physically located, not where you live or where your other properties sit. Always check each borough's own licensing pages — the GLA Property Licence Checker identifies which schemes apply at any London address.

What You Still Need to Think About

Even without selective licensing, Camden single-let landlords aren't regulation-free. You still need to comply with:

• Electrical safety — a valid EICR every five years
• Gas safety — annual Gas Safe inspection if gas appliances are present
• Energy performance — EPC rating E or above under MEES
• Deposit protection — within 30 days of receipt
• Right-to-rent checks — identity and immigration verification before granting occupation

For London, the national Private Rented Sector Database registration period is 15 July to 14 October 2027. During the rollout, landlords must register properties let under an assured periodic or regulated tenancy at the regional deadline, and properties let after it; supported exempt accommodation is excluded. The annual fee amount has not yet been confirmed.

For your Camden HMO properties, the Camden Landlord Licensing Guide walks through the full application process, documents, fees and conditions step by step.

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