Excluded Licence Agreement Template for England and Wales

An Excluded Licence Agreement is a specialised legal document designed to grant temporary property usage rights while explicitly avoiding the security of tenure protections found in traditional lease arrangements. Unlike standard tenancy agreements, this document ensures that you can maintain greater control over your property while providing the licensee with clear usage rights for a specified period.

When do you need this document?

You'll need an Excluded Licence Agreement when you want to grant someone temporary use of your property without creating a formal tenancy. This is particularly common in modern business arrangements such as co-working spaces where multiple users share facilities, pop-up retail stores requiring short-term premises, or when providing temporary office space to consultants or project-based workers. The document is also essential when you need to maintain the right to access the property or when the arrangement involves shared facilities that wouldn't typically be found in exclusive tenancy agreements.

Key legal considerations

The most critical aspect of this agreement is ensuring it genuinely creates a licence rather than a lease, which requires careful drafting of the exclusion provisions. The document must clearly state that no security of tenure is granted and that the arrangement falls outside the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. You'll need to include specific clauses about shared access, retained control by the licensor, and the personal nature of the permission granted. Payment terms should be structured as licence fees rather than rent, and termination provisions must be clearly defined to avoid any implication of ongoing rights. The agreement should also address insurance responsibilities, permitted use restrictions, and any obligations regarding property maintenance or utilities.

Legal requirements in England and Wales

Under England and Wales law, your Excluded Licence Agreement must comply with several key pieces of legislation to be valid and enforceable. The Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 requires explicit exclusion statements to ensure the licensee cannot claim security of tenure. You must also consider the Housing Act 1988 to avoid inadvertently creating an assured shorthold tenancy, particularly in residential or mixed-use situations. If the licensee is acting as a consumer rather than a business, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 will apply, requiring fair and transparent terms. The Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 governs the general enforceability of limitation clauses, so you cannot include unreasonable exclusions of liability. Additionally, all terms must be clearly expressed in plain English, and any deposit arrangements should comply with relevant statutory protection schemes if applicable.