Apply for a Selective licence
Selective Licensing started on 1 September 2022 and requires rented properties (houses, flats, bungalows etc.) within the Oxford City Council administrative area to have a licence unless:
- The home is already licensed as an HMO; or
- There is an exemption.
Application fee
The application fee is charged in two stages. Stage 1 (£178) is paid with the application. The Stage 2 fee is paid with the draft licence. Discounts are taken from the second stage. You are required to give pre-authorisation for the second stage payment, the system is set to the maximum that may be charged at this point (£302).This is known as continuous payment authority. If you do not wish to do this, you can contact the team for alternative payment methods, providing the application reference number via email at propertylicensing@oxford.gov.uk.
The early bird and accreditation discounts are depended on criteria being met. We have to assess the application to decide if the early brid or accreditation fee can be given (for example, a landlord might not submit all the required docuements).
Apply for a licence
Important note on address look-up
The address look-up in the application system is not always consecutive - for example, flats, annexes or named buildings are often at the end of the list. Please scroll down the list before contacting us to tell us a property is not in the look-up list.
If the property does not appear, then first check the property is in Oxford City Council's administrative area i.e. to whom council tax is paid. You can check the property's district council on the Oxfordshire County Council website.
Please read before submitting your application
- We strongly advice you to read the application guide before starting the application to ensure you have all the information available and know how to complete the form.
- You must supply the FREEHOLDER details for the property as this is required. If you have not supplied a FREEHOLDER for your property, this will cause delays to your application.
- You must add the INTERSTED PARTIES separately even if the property is jointly owned, all interested parties MUST be listed separately. It is possible to add more than one freeholder/leaseholder etc. to your application.
- All parties listed must have unique emails as we must contact each interested party individually. If duplicate emails are provided for any parties, this will cause delays to your application. If a person does not have an email, then we will post the information. However, we prefer an email as this is more environmentally friendly and quicker.
- Please be sure that the uploaded certificates you have supplied meet all the requirements
- Once you press SUBMIT, you will not be able to view/amend the uploaded documents.
If any of the above need to be amended, please do so BEFORE SUBMITTING THE APPLICATION. If any of the above issues are found on your application, this may cause delays as well as make your application ineligible for any discounts.
Help with making an application
See our Selective Licensing Application Guide for help with making an application. A video guide is also available to view.