TV licences for the over-75s

The television licence

Under part 4 of the Communications Act 2003, a licence is needed to:

• watch or record TV on any channel on any TV service (like Sky, Virgin Media and Freeview)
• watch live on streaming services (like ITVX, All 4, YouTube and Amazon Prime Video)
• use BBC iPlayer

The above applies to any device used, including a TV, desktop computer, laptop, mobile phone, tablet, games console, digital box or DVD/VHS recorder.

The 2003 act is supported by the Communications (Television Licensing) Regulations 2004. The regulations set out the types of television licence, the criteria for obtaining them, the fees payable, and the concessions that are available.

Free licences for the over-75s in receipt of Pension Credit

Since 1 August 2020, people aged over-75 who are in receipt of Pension Credit have been eligible for a free licence. Before this date, all those aged over-75 were eligible for a free licence.

The TV Licensing website gives details of the other licence fee concessions that are available – for the severely sight impaired; people living in qualifying residential care and are disabled or over 60 and retired; and businesses such as hotels that provide units of overnight accommodation.

Why did the earlier concession for all the over-75s end?

Free TV licences for all the over-75s were introduced in November 2000. The cost was met by a grant from the Department for Work and Pensions to the BBC.

A key element of the BBC’s licence fee settlement, announced in July 2015, was that the BBC would take over funding free licences for the over-75s.

From June 2020, responsibility for determining whether there should be an age-related concession transferred from the government to the BBC. This was a result of amendments to the Communications Act 2003 made by the Digital Economy Act 2017.

The BBC consulted on the future of the over-75s concession between November 2018 and February 2019. 

In June 2019, the BBC announced that free licences for the over-75s would end and that, from 1 June 2020, a free licence would only be available to a household with someone aged over-75 who received Pension Credit. Sir David Clementi, BBC Chair at the time, said this was the “leading reform option” because it protected the poorest over-75s, while protecting BBC services.

According to the BBC, over 1.5 million households could get a free licence under the new scheme. The cost would be £250 million a year, depending on take-up.

Implementation of the change was put back to 1 August 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The future of licence fee concessions

The government launched the BBC Charter review on 16 December 2025. One of the review’s objectives, as set out in its terms of reference, is for a BBC “that is sustainably funded for decades to come to support its vital public service role”.

In an accompanying green paper (PDF), the government said it would consider whether current concessions could be improved. It would also consider the potential for further “targeted interventions”, such as new concessions or payment schedules. The government said these should be targeted at those households that are most likely to face financial pressure. However, the potential for “substantial new concessions” would be limited by funding pressures on the BBC.

The green paper said that the government did not plan to remove any existing concessions or revisit the decision on over-75s licences.

A consultation on the green paper closed on 10 March 2026. The government is considering the responses and has said that it plans to set out its policy decisions in a white paper, expected to be published later this year. For further detail, see the Library briefing The future of the BBC licence fee (PDF).