Whether you want to watch live football matches or can’t bear the thought of missing out on an episode of Love Island, you might be wondering if students always need a TV licence to watch TV or if there are any exceptions.
The bad news is that, as a general rule, students need a TV licence if they want to watch or record live TV or watch anything on BBC (even on iPlayer). There’s also no special student TV licence or student discount, so you’ll need to pay the same price as everyone else. However, there is one loophole where you can potentially watch live TV using your parents’ licence, which we’ll cover at the end of this blog.
This blog will include everything you need to know about when you need a TV licence and when you might not need one.
We’ll cover:
Find out what a TV licence is and why you need one.
Just how much you have to pay and when as a student.
Do students need to pay for a TV licence when living in student halls?
Do students need to pay for a TV licence when living in second- or third-year student accommodation?
If your parents pay for a TV licence, do you also have to pay for one?
Is there a TV licence loophole that means students are exempt?
There is no student discount for TV licences, so the price is the same for everyone—£174.50 a year (as of April 2025). You can pay yearly, monthly or quarterly through Direct Debit.
However, if you purchase an annual TV licence and don’t need it for the whole year—for example, if you’re living with your parents over the summer vacation—you can request a partial refund. You’ll just need to make sure there’s more than one full month left on your licence. You can request your refund through the TV licence website.
Individual tenancy agreements
If you each have a separate tenancy agreement with your landlord, each housemate must purchase their own TV licence to watch live TV in their rooms.Joint tenancy agreements
If you have a joint tenancy agreement, you’ll only need one TV licence to cover the entire house. If you’re all keen to watch live TV, you can split the cost between everyone in the house, unless, of course, the landlord has supplied a TV as by doing this, the licence fee will fall onto them. Not sure what the difference between individual and joint tenancy agreements is? Have a look at our blog post ‘What you need to know about student tenancy agreements’.Generally, your parents’ TV Licence won’t cover you while you’re away at university if you want to watch live TV.
However, there is a student TV licence loophole if your parents’ address is your main address outside of term time, and they pay for a TV licence…
At Split the Bills, we’re on a mission to make bills as simple as possible for students. That’s why our bill-splitting package includes uncapped energy, water, Wi-Fi and a TV licence!
We do all the hard work of setting up your utility accounts, comparing broadband deals, and creating direct debits. All you need to do is make one single monthly payment each month!
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