Council Licensing Guide · Scotland

How Much Does a Short-Term Let Licence Cost in East Renfrewshire Council?

Application fees in East Renfrewshire Council run £149–£1,245, plus the safety certificates every Scottish short-term let needs. Confirm current fees on the official council page.

Licence valid 3 years Mandatory since Oct 2023

Licence fees

East Renfrewshire Council Fees

Fee band Application Renewal
Secondary Let - up to 2 bedrooms £936 £775
Secondary Let - up to 3 bedrooms £987.50 £826.50
Secondary Let - up to 4 bedrooms £1,039 £878
Secondary Let - up to 5 bedrooms £1,090.50 £929.50
Secondary Let - up to 6 bedrooms £1,142 £981
Secondary Let - up to 7 bedrooms £1,193.50 £1,032.50
Secondary Let - 8+ bedrooms £1,245 £1,084
Home Let - up to 2 bedrooms £636 £528
Home Let - up to 3 bedrooms £687.50 £579.50
Home Let - up to 4 bedrooms £739 £631
Home Let - up to 5 bedrooms £790.50 £682.50
Home Let - up to 6 bedrooms £842 £734
Home Let - up to 7 bedrooms £893.50 £785.50
Home Let - 8+ bedrooms £945 £837
Home Share - 1 bedroom £363 £301
Home Share - 2 bedrooms £388.60 £327
Home Share - 3 bedrooms £414.20 £353
Home Share - 4 bedrooms £439.80 £379
Home Share - 5 bedrooms £465.40 £405
Home Let and Home Share - up to 2 bedrooms £636 £528
Home Let and Home Share - up to 3 bedrooms £687.50 £579.50
Home Let and Home Share - up to 4 bedrooms £739 £631
Home Let and Home Share - up to 5 bedrooms £790.50 £682.50
Home Let and Home Share - up to 6 bedrooms £842 £734
Home Let and Home Share - up to 7 bedrooms £893.50 £785.50
Home Let and Home Share - 8+ bedrooms £945 £837
Provisional New Build Licence - up to 2 bedrooms £936 —
Provisional New Build Licence - up to 3 bedrooms £987.50 —
Provisional New Build Licence - up to 4 bedrooms £1,039 —
Provisional New Build Licence - up to 5 bedrooms £1,090.50 —
Provisional New Build Licence - up to 6 bedrooms £1,142 —
Provisional New Build Licence - up to 7 bedrooms £1,193.50 —
Provisional New Build Licence - 8+ bedrooms £1,245 —
Transfer Licence - up to 2 bedrooms £149 —

Figures below are taken from the Council's own 'Short term lets fees' page (eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk/stl-fees), captured via a web.archive.org snapshot dated 13 September 2025 (page shows 'Last modified on 22 May 2025') because the live page is Cloudflare-protected and blocks automated/tool fetches (confirmed 403 'cf-mitigated: challenge' on repeated attempts with browser-like headers). This is NOT the 2022 fee-setting figures reported in 2022 press coverage (e.g. Barrhead News' £230-£595 range) which are now superseded — the Council has since restructured and uprated its schedule considerably. All bands scale per-bedroom in fixed £51.50 (Secondary Let / Home Let / Home Let & Home Share) or roughly £25.60-£26 (Home Share) increments per extra bedroom, capping at an '8+ bedrooms' top band (Home Share caps at 5 bedrooms). A separate flat Provisional New Build Licence fee schedule mirrors the Secondary Let application figures (no renewal, as it converts to a full licence), and a flat £149 Transfer Licence fee applies (up to 2 bedrooms band shown). The Council's page itself flagged that 'New Build fees will be reviewed next Financial Year 2026/2027' — since our snapshot predates FY2026/27, it is possible the New Build band (and conceivably others) has been revised again since May 2025; we could not confirm the live 2026/27 page due to the Cloudflare block. Licences run for up to 3 years, and application fees are payable in full upfront and are non-refundable (no instalments).

No separate planning permission needed

East Renfrewshire Council has explicitly stated it does not intend to implement Short-Term Let Control Area Regulations, citing the estimated low prevalence of STL activity locally. It keeps this under review. Because there is no control area, an STL use change does not automatically require planning permission purely by virtue of being in a control area — however hosts must still separately check whether their specific proposed use breaches planning controls under s.123(1)(a)/(b) of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997, and are encouraged to obtain planning permission or a Certificate of Lawful Use of Development before applying. If planning permission is required and not held, this is a preliminary ground for the Council refusing to even consider the licence application.

Before you apply

Documents You'll Need

  • Completed online STL licence application (via the Council's licensing portal)
  • Gas safety report/certificate (if applicable)
  • Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR)
  • PAT testing records for movable appliances
  • EPC (where applicable)
  • Legionella risk assessment(s)
  • Evidence of buildings insurance
  • Evidence of public liability insurance
  • Evidence of planning permission / Certificate of Lawful Use of Development, or evidence an application has been submitted
  • Floor plan / room measurements (Council may request, showing room sizes, escape routes, and any mobility-impairment provision)
  • Site Notice (displayed for 21 days) and completed Certificate of Compliance
  • Provisional planning certificate (Provisional New Build Licence only)
  • Disclosure re: relevant convictions of applicant (fraud, dishonesty, violence, drugs, firearms etc.)

Safety certificates

Certificates Required

Your East Renfrewshire Council licence application must be backed by current safety certificates. These are jobs for a certified assessor, and getting them booked early is the most common thing that holds an application up.

ReferralFree. We'll pass your details to a local certified assessor who covers your area.

Get your licence certificates sorted

A short-term let licence in East Renfrewshire Council needs a set of safety certificates. Tell us about your property and we'll connect you with a local certified assessor for a no-obligation quote.

Gas safety inspection/report (if gas appliances present) - annualElectrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) - at least every 5 yearsPortable Appliance Testing (PAT) report for moveable electrical appliancesEnergy Performance Certificate (EPC) - where required, and rating must be displayed on listingsLegionella risk assessment (and separate assessment for any hot tub/spa pool)Buildings insurance (valid for licence duration)Public liability insurance (valid for duration of each let agreement)Evidence of planning permission or a Certificate of Lawful Use of Development (or evidence an application has been made)Provisional planning certificate (only for Provisional New Build Licence applications)Fire risk assessment / compliance with fire safety measures (Fire (Scotland) Act 2005)Site Notice displayed for 21 days plus Certificate of Compliance submitted to the Council

No obligation. Your details go only to a local assessor covering East Renfrewshire Council.

Local conditions

Key Rules in East Renfrewshire Council

  • No Control Area designated: East Renfrewshire has chosen NOT to implement Short-Term Let Control Area Regulations (kept under review), so there is no blanket planning-permission trigger from a control area — but individual applicants must still confirm separately whether their specific let requires planning permission or a Certificate of Lawful Use of Development, and a failure to hold required planning permission is a preliminary ground for refusing to even consider the licence application.
  • Licences last up to 3 years; the application fee is payable in full at submission and is non-refundable — there is no instalment option.
  • Four licence types plus a Provisional New Build route: Home Sharing, Home Letting, Secondary Letting, Home Letting and Home Sharing (combined), and Provisional New Build (construction-stage, converts to a full licence on completion).
  • Multiple units can only share one licence if they sit on a single site/postal address; units with separate postal addresses or separate Registers of Scotland titles each need their own licence, even under common ownership.
  • A single site with two different letting arrangements (e.g. a home-share B&B plus a separately-bookable secondary-let annex) needs two separate licences of the corresponding types, even though it's one site.
  • Standard national mandatory conditions apply: annual gas safety inspection, 5-yearly EICR plus PAT testing, legionella risk assessment (with a separate one for any hot tub/spa), EPC display on listings where applicable, buildings and public liability insurance, smoke/CO alarms, and a maximum-occupancy condition (children under 10 excluded from the occupancy count per the Housing (Scotland) Act 1987).
  • Applicants must display a Site Notice at/near the premises for 21 days from submission and provide the Council with a signed Certificate of Compliance.
  • Processing aim is 28 days once a valid application (all fees/documents) is received, but the statutory maximum is 9 months for new hosts and 12 months for existing hosts during the transitional period.
  • A flat £149 Transfer Licence fee applies when transferring an existing STL licence to a new party (separate from the standard application/renewal bands).

Apply through East Renfrewshire Council

Applications are made directly to the council. This guide is a summary — always check the official page for the current fee and conditions.

Typical processing time: Council's own target: 28 days once a valid application (all documents and fees) is received. Statutory maximum under the legislation: 9 months for new hosts, 12 months for existing hosts (transitional period).

Official council licensing page

Common questions

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does an East Renfrewshire short-term let licence cost?
It depends on the letting type and number of bedrooms. As of the Council's current published schedule, a Secondary Let for up to 2 bedrooms is £936 to apply (£775 to renew), a Home Let (or combined Home Let and Home Share) for up to 2 bedrooms is £636 to apply (£528 to renew), and Home Sharing starts at £363 for 1 bedroom (£301 to renew), rising per extra bedroom. Fees increase in fixed steps for each additional bedroom band, capped at an '8+ bedrooms' top band.
Can I pay the licence fee in instalments over the 3-year term?
No. The Council's FAQ is explicit: the application fee is payable in full at the point of application and is non-refundable, even though the licence itself lasts up to three years.
Does East Renfrewshire have a short-term let control area?
No. The Council has decided not to implement Control Area Regulations, mainly due to the low estimated prevalence of short-term let activity in the area, though it says this is kept under review. This means an automatic planning-permission requirement tied to a control area does not apply here — but you must still separately check with the Council's planning department whether your specific let needs planning permission or a Certificate of Lawful Use of Development.
Do I need a licence if I only let one spare room on Airbnb for part of the year?
Yes. The Council's FAQ confirms home-sharing (letting rooms within your own home) needs a licence just like home-letting and secondary letting, and there is no exemption for seasonal or part-year letting, however few nights or days per year it happens.
How long does an application take to process?
Once the Council has all valid documentation, fees and information to validate the application, it aims to process within 28 days. However, the statutory maximum allowed under the legislation is 9 months for new hosts and 12 months for existing hosts (during the transitional period), so processing can take considerably longer if there is a backlog or missing information.
Will one licence cover more than one property or unit?
Sometimes. Units on a single site with one postal address (e.g. several self-catering cottages on one site) can usually be covered by a single licence. But units with separate postal addresses or separate Registers of Scotland titles - even if commonly owned, like a tenement block of flats or two neighbouring houses - each need their own separate licence. A guest house with a separately bookable annex also needs two licences (one home-sharing, one secondary letting), since they are different licence types.
Is there a fee to transfer an existing licence to a new owner?
Yes, East Renfrewshire lists a separate Transfer Licence fee of £149 (for up to 2 bedrooms), distinct from the standard application and renewal fee bands.

Short-Term Let Licences in Other Councils

The Highland Council Licence cost & rules Argyll and Bute Council Licence cost & rules Perth and Kinross Council Licence cost & rules The City of Edinburgh Council Licence cost & rules Aberdeen City Council Licence cost & rules Dundee City Council Licence cost & rules

See all Scottish council STL licence guides →

Council data last reviewed 2026-07. Fees and conditions are set by East Renfrewshire Council and can change — always confirm on the official council page before applying. This page is general information, not legal advice.