South West
HMO licensing in Wiltshire
Wiltshire Council requires a mandatory licence for HMOs occupied by 5 or more people from 2 or more households. No additional or selective licensing scheme is currently in force in Wiltshire (checked September 2026). The published licence fee starts at £375 (£200 to renew).
Mandatory licence
5+ people, 2+ households
National scheme
Additional / selective
None in force
Mandatory licensing only
Licence fee
From £375
Renewal £200
Decision time
Not published
Licensing schemes in Wiltshire
Wiltshire 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.
Licence fees
The published fee for a new HMO licence is £375, and £200 to renew. Fees can depend on the number of occupants or lettings, and they are reviewed each year.
Wiltshire Council's 'Houses in multiple occupation' page publishes a scaling fee table for 'first HMO licence on premises or previous licence lapsed or previous licence revoked', banded by number of lettings: up to 5 lettings £375; 6-10 £475; 11-15 £560; 16-20 £660; more than 20 £750. Renewal fees are separate and lower: 'circumstances unchanged' £200, or £350 if there is a new licence holder and/or changes to the property. Variation fees: £150 for a change of management/licence holder, or £200 plus any difference in banding for a change in numbers. There is also a £50 charge for returning an incomplete, illegible or inaccurate application. The council states fees are not subject to VAT, are reviewed annually, and that where it exercises discretion to issue a licence for less than 5 years the fee is reduced pro rata. No accredited-landlord or landlord-association discount is published. totalGbp/renewalGbp below use the lowest 'up to 5 lettings' band as the representative figure since the fee scales by number of lettings rather than being a single flat amount - see the full band table in this note for larger HMOs.
Fee source: wiltshire.gov.uk. Fees change during the year, so check the council before you apply.
Minimum room sizes
| Single bedroom | 6.51 m² (national fallback - Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation (Mandatory Conditions of Licences) (England) Regulations 2018, SI 2018/616). |
|---|---|
| Double bedroom | 10.22 m² (national fallback, SI 2018/616). |
| Child under 10 | 4.64 m² (national fallback, SI 2018/616). |
| Notes | Wiltshire Council does not publish its own numeric room-size table. Both its main HMO web page and its HMO Licence Application form explicitly flag that 'Statutory Instrument 2018 no 616 introduced minimum room sizes for bedrooms' and direct applicants to that Regulation, without restating the figures on the council's own materials. The national SI 2018/616 minimums are therefore used here as an explicit fallback, not a council-specific standard. The application form also notes room-size calculations exclude chimney breasts and any floor area with a ceiling height of 1.6 m or less, and include fixed cupboards. |
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 safety requirements
- Wiltshire Council's guidance requires a fire risk assessment under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, covering identification of fire hazards, people at risk, risk reduction, physical/management precautions, an emergency plan, and periodic review.
- Means of escape from fire must be kept free of obstruction and in good repair; fire-fighting equipment, emergency lighting and alarms must be kept in good working order, under the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006.
- In HMOs with more than four occupants, notices showing the location of means of escape from fire must be displayed so they are clearly visible to all occupiers.
- The HMO Licence Application form requires enclosure of a Fire Risk Assessment report and an annual maintenance record for any automatic fire detection system, and asks applicants to detail fire doors (30-minute, intumescent strip, self-closer, thumb-turn lock), call points, smoke detectors and emergency lighting room by room.
Kitchen, bathroom and amenity standards
- Licensing is intended to ensure 'each HMO is suitable for occupation by the number of people allowed under the licence' and that management standards are adequate, per Wiltshire Council's HMO web page, but the council does not publish a specific numeric bathroom/kitchen-per-occupant ratio on its site.
- The council's Private Sector Housing Enforcement Policy 2024 confirms HMOs are regulated under the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006, which set minimum management, repair and amenity-maintenance standards for all HMOs regardless of licensable status.
- No council-specific kitchen size or facilities-per-occupant standard was found; the HMO Licence Application form's property schedule asks applicants to record amenities (bath/shower, wash-hand basin, toilet, mechanical ventilation, fixed heating, cooker, dry goods storage) and persons sharing per room, assessed by the council at inspection rather than against a published ratio table.
Documents you will need
- Gas safety inspection certificate — A current gas safety inspection certificate must be enclosed with the application (Wiltshire Council HMO Licence Application form, Enclosures list item B).
- Electrical installation/appliance inspection certificate — A current electrical installation/appliance inspection certificate (EICR) must be enclosed (Enclosures list item C).
- Fire risk assessment report — Required enclosure (Enclosures list item D).
- Automatic fire detection maintenance record — Annual maintenance record for any automatic fire detection system, where fitted (Enclosures list item A).
- Floor plans / layout of property — Floor plans/layout of the property, with room uses and sizes (Enclosures list item E).
- Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) — A copy of the current EPC (Enclosures list item G).
- Application fee — The appropriate fee per the band table, referenced as Enclosures list item F.
Sources
Compiled from the council’s own published pages and documents; data reviewed September 2026. Rules and fees change, so always confirm with Wiltshire Council before applying. This is general information, not legal advice.