A colour TV Licence now costs £180 annually, and a black-and-white licence is £60.50, after the latest price rise on 1 April 2026. However, many households may be paying for a licence they don't actually need.
When You Don't Need a TV Licence
TV Licensing states: "You need a TV Licence to watch any live and on-demand programmes on BBC iPlayer. You don't need a TV Licence to watch on-demand programmes on other services such as Netflix, ITVx or YouTube." The agency also clarifies that you don't need a licence if you only download or watch on-demand or catch-up programmes on services other than BBC iPlayer. A licence is not required to watch S4C programmes on demand.
Do You Need a Licence Without a TV?
TV Licensing says: "A TV Licence covers you for all TV channels, pay TV services like Sky, and live TV on streaming services like Amazon Prime Video, YouTube, and Netflix. As well as everything on BBC iPlayer." This applies to any device. If you never watch live TV on any channel, pay TV service, or streaming service, or use BBC iPlayer, you don't need a licence.
What You Can Do Without a Licence
You don't need a licence to: watch S4C programmes on demand; watch DVDs or Blu-rays; stream, rent or buy movies from providers like Sky, Virgin Media, EE TV, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney Plus or Now; play video clips through services like YouTube; play video games; or watch on-demand or catch-up programmes on services other than BBC iPlayer.
Penalties for Not Having a Licence
Watching, recording or downloading TV without a valid TV Licence could result in prosecution. If convicted, you may be fined up to £1,000, plus any legal costs and compensation the court orders. In Guernsey, the maximum fine is up to £2,000.
