The Deregulation Act 2015 is now in force. In Greater London, residential premises can generally be used as temporary sleeping accommodation without planning permission for up to 90 nights in a calendar year where the statutory conditions are met. More than 90 nights normally requires planning permission. Since 1 May 2026, most private residential tenancies in England are assured periodic tenancies rather than ASTs, and Section 21 has been abolished. Holiday lets and genuine licences may still fall outside the assured tenancy regime, but the label used in the agreement is not decisive.
The Deregulation Bill, which is currently making its way through Parliament, proposes to remove planning restrictions which apply to short-term lets in London properties. At present, Londoners must apply for planning permission if they want to rent out their property for less than three months.
If the Act comes into force, it will open up the short-term letting market in the capital, where demand is highest. But what is the legal position if a landlord wants to let their property for a limited period?
Licences & Principal Home
There is no separate legal definition or status of short-term lets. It is a term of art usually referring to agreements of less than six months.
The Housing Act 1988 is the main legislation that governs residential tenancies. In short, a tenancy granted to an individual who occupies the property as their principal home will be an AST by default.
There are certain exceptions under the Act, for example, holiday lets or where the landlord is also resident in the property or where the rent is above a certain threshold (£100,000).
Many agents and landlords are tempted to grant “licenses” for short term letting purporting to exclude the provisions of the Housing Act 1988. However, this is not legally possible unless the factual circumstances of the letting fall within one of the specific exemptions in Schedule 1 of the Housing Act 1988. The law is very clear that it does not matter what you call the arrangement, or even what the parties are happy to agree to; if it is not in an exempt category, it will be an AST if the conditions mentioned above are satisfied.
Nevertheless, there is a sizeable serviced accommodation market because it is possible to let properties on a licence for whatever period the parties are happy to agree to where the property will not be occupied by the licensee as their principal home.
This will be a critical factor for landlords considering short-term letting. It is a question of fact, for example, where do they have their post delivered to, do they have another property which they intend to return to and which contains their furniture and personal possessions? Where are they registered to vote, have their GP surgery, where do their immediate family live etc.?.
In most cases it will be fairly obvious, but landlords need to be careful to ensure they understand the tenant’s situation and intentions in relation to the property and that the licence agreement properly reflects the fact that it will not be their principal home.
ASTs for less than 6 months
But what if it will be their principal home and the parties are happy to agree a short-term let, e.g. for 3 months? More.
By default, those agreements are assured shorthold tenancies irrespective of what the parties call the agreement, i.e. you can’t give an agreement for three months and call it a licence; the law makes it an AST.
Contrary to popular belief, it is perfectly possible to grant an AST for short periods of less than six months. However, the way the Housing Act works is that, if the tenant won’t leave after the fixed term the landlord has to make an application to the court and the court is unable to make an order for possession that takes effect earlier than 6 months from the start of the agreement. That’s where the confusion arises about six months security of tenure. It’s not that the agreement has to be for a minimum of six months, it’s just that the court can’t grant an order for possession that takes effect before six months.
Therefore, you can have short-term agreements which are AST’s and, provided the tenant moves out then there’s no problem but, if they don’t, the landlord is stuck with them for a minimum of six months (and however long it takes to complete the possession process after that).
Company Lets
One way people sometimes try to get round this issue is to grant a tenancy to a company which then sublets to permitted occupiers. Company lets are excluded by the Housing Act and the agreement can therefore be for as long or as short as the landlord wants. However, it doesn’t actually get round the AST problem because, if the company grants exclusive possession to an individual who occupies the property as their principal home then that will be an AST. S.18 of the Housing Act 1988 provides that, even if you end the superior tenancy, i.e. that of the company, it doesn’t automatically terminate the AST; you have to terminate it in accordance with the provisions of the act, i.e. by using the S.8 or S.21 process and the tenant will enjoy a minimum six months security of tenure.
Holiday Lets
There is one other form of excluded occupancy that may apply: holiday lets. They are also excluded from the Housing Act so can be granted for short-term use. However, as with all types of tenancy, it doesn’t matter what you call it, the important point is what the property is actually used for. If it’s not used for a holiday, and exclusive possession is given to an individual paying rent and occupying it as their principal home, it will be an AST.
Summary
So, in answer to the question, yes you can grant short term lets that are not ASTs. However, landlords must be careful to ensure that they are not dressing up tenancies as licences when the background facts mean they are ASTs otherwise they may be stuck with tenants for longer than they bargained for.
Useful UK legal and solicitor links
- GOV.UK: Rules for self-catering holiday homes in England
- London City Hall: Short-term and holiday lets in London
- Osbornes Law: Short-term letting and lease restrictions
This article provides general information only and is not a substitute for legal or tax advice on a specific case.
