Greenwich Selective Licensing: What Landlords Need to Know
Selective licensing covers parts of five wards today and expires on 1 October 2027. A replacement scheme covering eighteen wards is out for public consultation until 12 October 2026. Two HMO schemes already run borough wide underneath both.
Scheme facts last reviewed
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If you are an overseas landlord
Greenwich requires the licence holder to give every tenant the name, address and telephone number of a local emergency out-of-hours contact, not a mobile number that rings in another time zone or a managing agent's daytime switchboard. If you manage a Greenwich property from overseas, appointing someone does not move your liability: the licence holder remains responsible under Part 3 of the Housing Act 2004, and if your agent's records are thin, the evidence gap is yours.
Three licensing schemes, one property, one right answer
Greenwich runs three separate licensing schemes. A property needs one licence, but it must be the right one, and the answer is driven by who is living there, not by what you call the property. Two of the three apply across the entire borough, which is why "my street is not in the selective area" is not the reassurance landlords take it to be.
- Selective licensing
- Parts of five wards only (Woolwich Riverside, Woolwich Common, Shooters Hill, Plumstead Common and Plumstead Glyndon). In force 1 October 2022, ceases 1 October 2027. Fee £905.75 for the property.
- Additional HMO licensing
- Borough wide, catching 3 or 4 unrelated people from 2 or more households. In force 1 January 2024, ceases 31 December 2028.
- Mandatory HMO licensing
- Borough wide, 5 or more tenants from 2 or more households. A national requirement with no end date.
- Replacement scheme
- A replacement selective scheme covering eighteen wards is out for consultation until 12 October 2026. No start date has been published.
Sources: Royal Borough of Greenwich licensing pages; Public Notice of Selective Licensing Designation, made 31 March 2022; HMO Additional Licensing Designation 2023; Community Conversations Greenwich, Selective licensing 2026 consultation. Verify scheme facts against the council on the go-live date.
A licence and a compliance record are not the same thing.
Greenwich does not only check whether you hold a licence. Its conditions require a six-monthly inspection, a copy of the licence and conditions handed to every tenant at the start of the tenancy, and a documented anti-social behaviour file that starts the moment a complaint arrives.
The question a regulator asks is never "did you comply?" It is "can you prove you complied, at any point, for the five-year life of the licence?" Greenwich can require the licence holder to provide copies of any documents, safety or other certificates, or information, within 14 days of a written request, half the period used by several neighbouring boroughs.
In regulated environments, compliance is not what you do. It is what you can prove.
Letting a property that requires a licence without one, and breaching licence conditions, are offences under the Housing Act 2004. Greenwich can impose a civil penalty of up to £40,000, and a Rent Repayment Order can force you to hand back up to 24 months' rent. A landlord has a complete defence to the licensing offence from the date a valid application is made. Applying stops the clock. Our free guide covers the conditions Greenwich enforces, the ones landlords most often miss, and exactly what evidence the council expects to see within fourteen days.
Greenwich Landlord Licence Compliance Guide 2026
Selective licensing covers parts of five wards today and expires on 1 October 2027. A replacement scheme covering eighteen wards is out for consultation until 12 October 2026.
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- Which of Greenwich's three licensing schemes applies to your property, and where the selective area actually sits
- The proposed eighteen-ward scheme, and how to respond to the consultation before it closes
- The conditions landlords most commonly miss, including the 14-day production clock
- A ten-question stress test to see where you may be exposed
The expertise behind the evidence, not just a place to store it.
We chase the renewal before it lapses
Certificates, inspections and reference checks tracked and actioned ahead of time, so a deadline never slips past you. Not a reminder you have to act on yourself.
A complete file, ready when Royal Borough of Greenwich asks
A timestamped record for every obligation on every property. Software can store documents. It cannot tell you what is missing, or what Royal Borough of Greenwich will actually want to see. We do that.
A named expert who answers for it
A real compliance function that stands behind your record, registered with a Property Redress Scheme and insured. Not a portal, and not a favour from a friend.
When Royal Borough of Greenwich asks for a property's compliance history, you forward one file and get on with your day.
Why we built Compliance Shield.
“Compliance in a regulated sector is not about good intentions. It is about being able to prove what you did, on the day someone asks. We built Compliance Shield to give landlords that certainty.”
Greenwich landlord licensing, answered
Eighteen wards proposed. Consultation closes 12 October 2026. Which licence does your property need?
Start with the free guide. It takes ten minutes and shows you exactly where you may be exposed.
Not sure which of the three licences applies, or whether your property falls inside the current or proposed selective area? Speak to our team about managing your compliance from £80 per month per property.