How to Apply for a Lambeth Selective Licence: Step-by-Step Application Guide

Lambeth processes all licence applications through its Metastreet portal at hmolicensing.lambeth.gov.uk. Paper applications are only accepted if you can demonstrate digital exclusion. The portal handles selective, additional HMO and mandatory HMO applications, and the process is broadly the same for each — but an application is not "duly made" until every required document is uploaded and Part A is paid.

Before You Start: What You Need Ready

Gather everything before logging into the portal. Sessions can time out. The application is not submitted until all required documents are uploaded and Part A is paid.

Documents to have in hand:

• Gas safety certificate (CP12) — issued by a Gas Safe registered engineer, current annual certificate
• Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) — satisfactory, with no outstanding C1 or C2 defects. If defects exist, you need a minor works certificate proving they have been remediated
• Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) — minimum E rating (or a valid registered exemption). If rated C or higher, it qualifies you for the £50 Part B discount
• Annotated floor plan — scaled, showing room dimensions in square metres, ceiling heights, room uses, smoke/heat detector locations, fire doors and escape routes
• Written tenancy agreement — listing full names of all current occupants
• Fire risk assessment — for HMO applications especially, covering common parts
• Land Registry title deed — for selective licences, dated within 28 days of submission
• Accreditation evidence — if claiming the £75 LLAS/NRLA discount

Every safety certificate must have at least three months of remaining validity at upload. An EICR that expires in two months will be rejected.

Step-by-Step Portal Process

1. Create an account. Register at the Metastreet portal with your email address. You can manage multiple properties from one account.

2. Start a new application. Select the property address using the portal's lookup tool. This confirms the ward and the applicable scheme. If the address lookup places your property in a different ward than expected, check — boundary reviews have moved some streets between wards.

3. Select the correct scheme. The portal should match the scheme to your property, but verify: selective for a single household or up to two sharers, additional HMO for three or four sharers, mandatory HMO for five or more from two or more households.

4. Fill in licence holder and manager details. The proposed licence holder is the person or company legally responsible for the property — usually the freeholder or primary leaseholder. For limited companies, the company itself is named as licence holder with a UK-based director listed alongside. A separate managing agent can be named if someone else handles day-to-day management.

5. Complete fit and proper declarations. Both the proposed licence holder and the managing agent must declare any unspent criminal convictions, findings of unlawful discrimination, housing law enforcement actions, involvement with revoked licences, and bankruptcy or insolvency issues.

6. Declare interested parties. Confirm that you have notified the freeholder, any mortgage lender, joint owners, managing agents and long leaseholders with terms over three years. The notification must happen before or at the same time as the application.

7. Upload all documents. Attach every certificate and document listed above. The portal validates file uploads but does not check certificate content — that review happens during processing.

8. Pay Part A. The selective licence Part A fee is £717.50. HMO Part A is roughly £366.67 per habitable room. Payment completes the submission.

What "Duly Made" Means and Why It Matters

An application is legally duly made only when all three conditions are met: every portal field is completed, all mandatory documents are uploaded, and Part A is paid. Starting a draft, paying the fee without uploading certificates, or receiving an automated payment receipt does not qualify.

This matters because the statutory defence against operating without a licence — under Sections 72(4) and 95(3) of the Housing Act 2004 — only kicks in once the application is duly made. A landlord who has paid Part A but has not uploaded the gas safety certificate has no legal protection during the processing window and remains exposed to civil penalties and rent repayment orders.

After Submission

Processing takes time — forum posts from Lambeth landlords report waits of several months. During this period:

• Keep your payment receipt and submission confirmation
• The council validates documents and checks fit-and-proper declarations
• A notice of intent (draft licence) is issued with proposed conditions
• You have 14 days to challenge any conditions in writing
• Part B (£307.50 for selective, less any discounts) is collected before the final licence is granted

Our Lambeth landlord licensing guide includes the full document specification matrix for each scheme type, a pre-submission audit checklist, and step-by-step portal instructions so you can complete the application correctly the first time and avoid losing the non-refundable Part A fee.

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