Short-term letting in England: the rules owners need in 2026

Where England stands in autumn 2026

England is the only UK nation where a host can still start letting a home to holidaymakers without a licence, certificate or registration number. That freedom is narrower than it looks: planning law, tax thresholds, fire safety duties and private contracts all shape what an owner may do. This guide sets out the position as we checked it in late September 2026 and flags what is due to change.

A national register, promised for March 2027

The Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 gave ministers the power to create a registration scheme for short-term lets, but it has not yet been switched on. On 3 September 2026 the Culture Secretary told Parliament that the register should be fully operational by March 2027, that it is expected to be mandatory and delivered mainly online, and that its purpose is to give councils better data and to support compliance with existing health and safety rules. What hosts will have to submit, whether a fee applies and how often registration must be renewed had not been published when we wrote this. Our reading: put your safety paperwork in order now, since it is the obvious thing a register will ask for.

Planning: no C5 class, but change of use still counts

In 2023 the government consulted on a new planning use class, C5, for short-term lets, paired with permitted development rights that councils could withdraw locally. The idea was announced in February 2024 but has not been brought into force. So the long-standing test still applies outside London: letting a dwelling to visitors does not automatically need planning permission, yet a council can decide that intensive, year-round letting has turned a home into something materially different. That is a question of fact and degree, judged property by property. Flats in shared blocks, rapid turnover and complaints about noise, parking or waste tend to tip the balance. Article 4 directions, which strip permitted development rights in a defined area, mostly target houses in multiple occupation in England, but check the council's list anyway. Where there is real doubt, a pre-application enquiry costs far less than an enforcement notice.

London's 90-night ceiling

Greater London has its own rule. Since the Deregulation Act 2015 amended the Greater London Council (General Powers) Act 1973, a home can be used for short stays without planning permission only if the total stays within 90 nights in a calendar year and at least one person providing the accommodation is liable for council tax on it. Beyond that, permission is required, and boroughs rarely grant it for a whole home let all year round. Ignoring an enforcement notice is a criminal offence. For a London owner, the 90 nights are a design constraint rather than a detail: most sound plans pair short stays with longer furnished lets.

Council tax or business rates: the 140 and 70 test

Since 1 April 2023 a self-catering property in England moves from council tax to business rates only if, over the previous twelve months, it was available to let commercially for at least 140 nights and actually let for at least 70, and the owner intends to keep it available for 140 nights in the year ahead. Private use, stays longer than 28 nights and periods closed for works do not count. The Valuation Office Agency decides, on evidence. A property that falls short stays in council tax, and since 1 April 2025 councils have been able to add a premium of up to 100% on homes that nobody occupies as a main residence, with exceptions such as dwellings whose planning conditions prevent year-round occupation.

Income tax after the end of the FHL regime

The furnished holiday lettings regime ended on 6 April 2025 for income tax and capital gains tax, and on 1 April 2025 for companies. Short-let profits are now ordinary property income: mortgage interest earns only a basic-rate tax credit, new capital allowance claims are no longer available and the capital gains reliefs reserved for trading assets have gone. The government has also announced separate property income tax rates, two points above the general ones, from April 2027 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Our article on tax after the FHL abolition goes into the detail; a qualified adviser should model your own figures.

Fire, gas and furnishings

In the eyes of fire law a short let is not a private home. The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 makes the owner or manager a responsible person who must carry out a fire risk assessment and, since 1 October 2023, record it in full. The Home Office guide for small paying guest accommodation explains what is proportionate for a simple property. Gas appliances need an annual check by a Gas Safe registered engineer, upholstered furniture must meet the fire-resistance rules, and working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are the baseline.

Leases, mortgages and insurance

Planning is rarely the first obstacle; paperwork is. Many long leases restrict use to a private dwelling, and the Upper Tribunal has held that stays by paying guests can breach such a covenant. Most residential mortgages forbid letting without the lender's consent, and ordinary home insurance usually excludes paying guests. Check all three before spending anything on furniture.

Visitor levies: not yet, but coming

England has no tourist tax today. The government has said it will legislate so that mayoral and foundation strategic authorities can charge an overnight visitor levy, set as a percentage of the accommodation cost and covering short lets. Nothing is payable yet.

How we look at an English property

Our first questions never change: is it inside or outside Greater London, what does the lease or title allow, what does the lender say, and how many nights can it realistically be let. Then we check the council's planning stance and the rates position. Tell us about your property; we study every request and tell you honestly whether and how we can help.