Landlord licensing in Wirral Council

Licensing at a glance

HMO licensing

Mandatory HMO licensing applies to any property let to five or more people forming two or more households who share a kitchen, bathroom or toilet.

Additional licensing

Wirral Council has an Additional HMO licensing scheme for some smaller HMOs, which covers properties occupied by three or four unrelated tenants forming two or more households who share facilities. The current scheme was designated on 27 February 2023 and lasts for five years.

Selective licensing

Wirral Council has a Selective Licensing scheme covering parts of Birkenhead, Egremont, and Wallasey. This requires all privately rented properties in the designated areas to be licensed, including single-family lets. The current scheme was designated on 10 July 2023 and lasts for five years.

Towns covered

Wirral

What this means for you

If you let a property in the Wirral Council area, first confirm which licensing regime the exact address falls under. Mandatory HMO licensing applies to any property let to five or more people forming two or more households who share a kitchen, bathroom or toilet. Additional licensing can extend licensing to smaller HMOs. Selective licensing can require a licence for every private rented home in a designated area, including single-family lets. Check the current designations before you advertise. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 (main provisions commenced 2026) replaces fixed-term assured shorthold tenancies with periodic assured tenancies, ends section 21 no-fault evictions and introduces a national landlord database and ombudsman. Ensure you hold a current gas safety record where there is gas, an EICR no more than five years old, a valid EPC, working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, deposit protection and prescribed information, and the required prescribed documents served before the tenancy starts.

Official links

• Licensing pages
• Council website