Renewing a short-term let licence in Midlothian

Everything Thistle Compliance knows about renewing a short-term let licence with Midlothian Council — the fees, the documents, where to send it, and how to find your own expiry date.

Midlothian Councilmid-sized authority

Licence period: Three years.
Cost to renew: Same fee as a new application
We take work here: Yes
Fees checked: 2026-09-29

Read from the council's own published schedule, never an aggregator. Every guide is re-checked monthly.

Fees

Fees from 1 April 2026. The same figure covers an initial application and a renewal, banded by bedrooms and guests together.

Secondary letting

Bedrooms / guests	Application or renewal	Material change or transfer
Up to 4 bedrooms / 8 guests	£541	£315
5 to 8 bedrooms / 16 guests	£609	£368
8 to 12 bedrooms / 16–24 guests	£767	£452
More than 12 bedrooms / 24 guests	£61 per room or guest	£37

Home sharing and home letting

Bedrooms / guests	Application or renewal	Material change or transfer
1 bedroom / 3 guests	£247	£116
2 to 3 bedrooms / 9 guests	£290	£152
4 bedrooms / 9 guests	£383	£221
More than 4 bedrooms / 9 guests	£61 per room or guest	£37

Other application types

Variation of licence	£89
Duplicate licence	£37
True copy of a register entry	£110

Fees read from Midlothian Council's own published schedule on 2026-09-29 — source. Council fees are paid by you directly to the council. We never add to them and they never pass through our books.

What it comes to

Total costWorked example

Our fee: £319
Midlothian's fee: £541, paid direct to the council
Gas safety certificate: £29, paid direct to the engineer
Total: £889

Based on a secondary let up to four bedrooms, with an electrical report still in date. Your own figure depends on occupancy and on which certificates you already hold — we work that out before you commit to anything.

What is specific to Midlothian

Midlothian operates a limited grace period. On good grounds being shown, a valid application made within 28 days of the previous licence expiring may be treated as a renewal rather than a new application. It is assessed case by case and is intended for unforeseen major life events — the council states plainly that incomplete paperwork is not an acceptable reason. Do not plan around it.
Operating without a licence risks a fine of up to £2,500 and a one-year ban on applying — Midlothian states the ban explicitly where most councils do not.
Fees are banded by bedrooms and guests together, so both numbers matter. Above the top band the charge becomes £61 per room or guest.

What a renewal requires

A renewal is not a lighter version of a first application. It takes the identical document pack:

EICR electrical reportevery 5 years
Gas safety certificateevery 12 months
PAT testing certificateevery 12 months
Fire risk assessmentperiodic Plus the fire safety checklist, held on site
Scottish Fire & Rescue safety checklistevery renewal
Legionella risk assessmentperiodic You can do this one yourself
Insurance evidence, minimum £2m liabilityevery renewal
Floor plan and location planevery renewal
Owner declarationsevery renewal
Signed Certificate of Complianceevery renewal
Mandatory-conditions checklistevery renewal

How to find your own expiry date

Midlothian Council publishes a public register of licensed short-term lets, as every Scottish council must. Your licence details are in it.

Open the Midlothian public register

Search for your property address or your own name. If the register does not show an expiry date — most do not — work from your grant date and add the licence period above. If you applied in the 2023 window, your licence expires this autumn.

You do not need us for this part. The register is public and the date is free to find. What we sell is the work between knowing the date and filing the pack.

What we would do for you in Midlothian

You tell us the property. We work out which certificates are in date and which are missing, book accredited local engineers for the gaps, assemble the full pack, and file it with Midlothian Council before your deadline.

£319 for a single property, £379 for a secondary let. Council fees and engineers are paid by you directly, at cost. Filed before your deadline, or your money back.

Get your renewal handled See full pricing

What other councils charge

Fees are set locally and the spread across Scotland is wide, so a figure from a neighbouring authority is not a guide to this one. North Lanarkshire, Perth & Kinross, Renfrewshire, Scottish Borders, South Ayrshire — or the full list of council guides.

If you are not sure when your licence runs out, the dates and what happens if you miss them is the place to start.