HMO licensing in Crawley

Crawley Borough Council operates the national mandatory scheme. We found no additional or selective licensing scheme in force or proposed as of September 2026. Councils can introduce one after a public consultation, so it is worth setting an alert.

The published fee for a new HMO licence is £1,231.20, and £795.20 to renew. Fees can depend on the number of occupants or lettings, and they are reviewed each year.

Two-part fee, per Crawley's 'HMO licence fees and charges guide' (published on the council's HMO page as the 2026 to 2027 guide; the heading inside the PDF still reads '2025 / 2026 HMO Licence Fees'). Fee scales by occupant band, not per room: up to 6 persons = Part 1 Application Fee £924.10 (non-refundable, paid on submission) + Part 2 Licence Issue Fee £307.10 (paid before the licence issues; not required if refused) = £1,231.20. 7 to 10 persons = £1,002.40 + £307.10 = £1,309.50. Renewal: up to 6 persons £523.40 + £271.80 = £795.20; 7 to 10 persons £539.90 + £271.80 = £811.70. The fee is the same for all modes of occupation (shared house or bedsit). A £75 discount applies to every subsequent application by the same landlord for another Crawley property within the same financial year. No accredited-landlord discount is published in the fee guide. Totalgbp/renewalGbp shown are for the base band (up to 6 persons). The 'instalments' array is the [Part 1, Part 2] new-licence split for the base band.

Check the current fee on the council website (crawley.gov.uk) before you apply.

National minimums for licensed HMOs are 6.51 m² for one adult and 10.22 m² for two adults; councils can apply higher local standards.

• Fire risk assessment by a competent, appropriately qualified person/company must be provided with the licence application (Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005); measures are guided by the FRA and LACORS 'Housing - Fire Safety' guidance, with West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service able to consider it.
• FD30 fire doors with door closers on all rooms (except bathrooms/WCs) and cupboards off the escape route; close-fitting solid (not panelled) conventional doors with closers only acceptable in shared-house HMOs of fewer than 3 storeys. Intumescent strips required without exception; smoke seals required in bedsit-type HMOs and depend on detector location in shared houses. Fire doors to BS 8214.
• Shared house detection: mains-powered interlinked smoke alarms with battery back-up in the escape route on each floor; interlinked heat alarm in the kitchen; interlinked smoke detectors in the lounge, dining room and cellar (where applicable); non-interlinked single-point smoke detectors in each bedroom.
• Bedsit-type detection: as shared house, but with interlinked mains-powered smoke detectors with battery back-up in every bedroom and any other room where a fire may start (e.g. utility room), linked to common-area detectors and the kitchen heat detector.
• Any fire detection system must comply with BS 5839 Part 6 (2013); a compliance certificate must be provided with the licence application.
• Thumb-turn locks on all bedroom doors and exit doors (no reliance on a key); glass transoms over internal doors replaced or over-boarded with 30-minute material; no portable electrical appliances (washing machines, tumble dryers, fridge-freezers) in the escape route or a cupboard off it that is not a 30-minute fire-resisting compartment.
• Fire blanket fixed in an accessible location in the kitchen; emergency escape lighting only where the route is long/complex or lacks borrowed light; signage only where the route is long/complex; multi-purpose powder extinguishers only if tenants are given guidance; carbon monoxide alarm in any room containing a solid-fuel appliance.
• Furniture and furnishings safety declaration is part of the application (Furniture and Furnishings (Fire Safety) Regulations 1988).

• Heating: fixed heating in every unit of living accommodation (and in bathrooms, WCs and kitchens) capable of maintaining 21C when external temperature is -1C, with individual room controls; minimum 270 mm loft insulation and cavity walls insulated where appropriate.
• Bathrooms/WCs (guide table): 5 persons = 1 bathroom plus 1 separate toilet with wash hand basin (WC may be in a 2nd bathroom); 6 to 10 persons = 2 bathrooms plus 2 separate toilets with wash hand basins (one WC may be within a bathroom). 'Bathroom' means a room with a fixed bath or shower. No external facilities; non-glazed door with privacy lock.
• Kitchen (per five occupants): one four-ring hob, oven and grill; one sink with drainer and splashback; one standard fridge/freezer; worktop 500 mm x 600 mm per occupant; one 500 mm base unit or 1000 mm wall unit per occupant up to five. Above five occupants, worktop and cupboards increase proportionately where feasible (e.g. dishwasher in lieu of 2nd sink, 5/6-ring range in lieu of 2nd oven and hob).
• Kitchen must also have adequate electrical sockets, refuse disposal facilities, mechanical extractor fan or cooker hood, cleansable floor, impervious splashbacks by cooker/sink/prep areas.
• HMO must have a kitchen and sufficient dining space (dining area can be within the kitchen or a lounge-diner; no separate lounge required). Conservatories without fixed heating/insulation to current Building Regulations do not count as bedroom, lounge, dining room or kitchen.
• Gas safety certificate every 12 months; EICR every 5 years by an NICEIC/NAPIT-registered electrician (C1 and C2 items dealt with); EPC available to tenant and the council.

• Application form and licence fee — Completed Part 2 Housing Act 2004 HMO licensing application form (one per property) with the correct Part 1 Application Fee; an application without the correct fee is not accepted.
• Floor plans — A4 sketch plan of each floor showing room uses, bathrooms/kitchens/toilets, unit numbers, approximate room sizes, and locations of heat/smoke detectors, break-glass points, control panel and emergency lighting.
• Gas safety certificate(s) — Current certificate(s) from a Gas Safe registered engineer covering all gas appliances.
• Electrical Installation Condition Report — Current inspection report from a competent electrician; the application form specifies a test within the last 5 years confirming the installation is safe and satisfactory.
• Portable appliance (PAT) test reports — Recent portable electrical equipment test reports for appliances supplied by the landlord (e.g. cooker, microwave, washing machine, portable heaters).
• Fire detection test report (BS 5839) — BS 5839 test/compliance certificate for the fire detection system, if applicable.
• Emergency lighting test report (BS 5266) — BS 5266 test report for emergency lighting, if applicable.
• Fire risk assessment — FRA undertaken by an appropriately qualified, competent fire risk assessor/company.
• Furniture safety declaration — Declaration of compliance with the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire Safety) Regulations 1988, if applicable.
• Standard tenancy agreement — Copy of the standard tenancy agreement used.
• Planning / building control information — Planning and building control details for the property (note Crawley has Article 4 Directions covering 10 zones, in effect from 15 June 2022, requiring planning permission for new HMOs in those zones).
• Fit and proper person declaration and signatures — Part 5 fit and proper person declaration and Part 13 signed declarations; companies must have the application signed by a director/secretary/authorised officer with proof of authority.

• crawley.gov.uk
• crawley.gov.uk
• crawley.gov.uk
• crawley.gov.uk
• crawley.gov.uk

Compiled from the council’s own published pages and documents; data reviewed September 2026. Rules and fees change, so always confirm with Crawley Borough Council before applying. This is general information, not legal advice.