Middlesbrough Selective Licensing Fees — Full Breakdown for 2026

Licensing fees in Middlesbrough are one of the highest-anxiety questions for landlords — partly because the amounts are substantial, and partly because of the council's non-refundable fee policy. An application that gets rejected for missing documents or errors means you lose the fee and have to pay again in full.

Selective Licensing Fees

The two active designations in Newport ward charge different amounts:

Newport 2 (expires July 2028):

• Licence fee: £878, plus a £20 fit-and-proper-person check per proposed licence holder
• Paid as a single amount at application

Newport 1 Phase 2 (expires July 2029):

• Total fee: £998
• Split into two payments: £499 at application (Part 1), then £499 when the council issues a Notice of Intention to Grant (Part 2)

For Newport 2, if the application names both an owner and a managing agent, the two £20 fit-and-proper-person checks total £40 on top of the licence fee.

Mandatory HMO Licence Fees

Properties with five or more occupants from two or more households need a mandatory HMO licence rather than a selective licence. The fee is £1,168.88 for a five-year licence term, paid in staged instalments through the My Middlesbrough portal.

Why Are the Newport Fees Different?

The two Newport schemes were designated at different times under separate statutory orders. Newport 2 launched in July 2023 with an £878 fee. Newport 1 Phase 2 was designated in June 2024 and came into force on 5 August 2024 with a fee of £998, reflecting updated administrative and enforcement cost calculations.

Some streets are split between the two designations, so applying under the wrong scheme means paying the wrong fee and receiving a rejection — with no refund.

The Non-Refundable Fee Policy

This is the single most expensive trap in Middlesbrough licensing. The council's published terms state that applications submitted with errors, missing safety documentation, or under an incorrect scheme designation are subject to refusal without fee reimbursement.

The most common reasons for rejection:

• Gas safety certificate expired or missing
• EICR (electrical inspection) not uploaded or older than five years
• EPC below minimum Grade E
• Applying under Newport 2 when the property actually falls under Newport 1 Phase 2 (or vice versa)
• Incomplete fit-and-proper-person declarations

At £878 to £998, a rejected application is an expensive mistake — and you still need to pay the full fee again for your resubmission.

How to Protect Your Fee

Before you submit, confirm three things: the correct designation for your address (use the council's address checker, not your postcode), that every safety certificate is current and uploaded, and that the fit-and-proper declarations are complete. Treating the application as a pre-flight checklist rather than a simple form substantially reduces the risk of losing that non-refundable fee.

Our Middlesbrough Landlord Licensing Guide includes the full document checklist and a step-by-step pre-flight process for both Newport schemes.

See more England guides →