Moving Between London Boroughs: Council Tax, Permits and Admin

Every London borough runs its own council tax, parking permits and waste collections. A move of two miles can take you across a border and change all three. The removal itself is usually short. The paperwork is what catches people out.

Council tax is set by each council, so moving borough means closing one account and opening another. The old council needs your new address so it can send a final bill. The new council needs your move date and the names of the adults living with you.

Each council sets its own window for telling it:

Two things are easy to miss. First, if you paid by Direct Debit, it does not carry over. Hackney says you must cancel the old one and set up a new one on the new account number. Second, if the final bill shows a credit, you can claim a refund. Hackney says the money usually arrives within 14 days.

If you will live alone, apply for the 25% single person discount on the new account. GOV.UK says you must apply for it. Your band may also differ, and you can check the band of any home in England or Wales by postcode before you move.

This is the one that surprises people. A resident parking permit is tied to your address and zone. It does not follow you into another borough.

• Southwark cancels the permit when you move out of your zone, and refunds only complete months
• Tower Hamlets says "Permits cannot be transferred"
• Islington, Lambeth and Hackney let you change the address online, but only for a move inside the same borough

So plan to apply again in the new borough. Councils ask for proof of address and proof of the vehicle. Wandsworth, for example, accepts a removals contract as one proof of residence, and new residents can get a one-month temporary permit with one document. Lambeth asks that you live in a Lambeth controlled parking zone at least 4 nights a week.

Check before you commit to a new home that a permit is available at all. Hackney says new homes and redevelopments are "car free". Lambeth gives no permit where the address has a planning or S106 restriction. Tower Hamlets allows permits in car-free homes only in narrow cases. Some new or converted homes in Southwark are car free too.

Your permit and visitor vouchers do not cover the van in a suspended bay. Hackney says visitor vouchers are not valid in suspended bays, on yellow lines or in pay-and-display bays. Hackney also does not transfer or refund old vouchers when you move.

If the van needs a suspended bay, you apply to the council and pay its fee. Both ends of the move may be in different boroughs with different rules. Southwark, for example, asks for 7 days' notice and names removal vans as a use, while Sutton does not charge for a domestic removal suspension. Parking suspensions for moving day in London lists each borough's process.

You must register again when you change address. GOV.UK says it usually takes about 5 minutes. Lambeth's moving page makes the point plainly: the electoral register is not updated when you update council tax. Do it soon after you move, so you are not missed off.

A GP surgery can refuse you if you live outside its area, and must explain why in writing within 14 days. So a move across a border may mean a new surgery. Registering is free, and you do not need ID or proof of address. Online registration takes about 15 minutes, and your old surgery is told automatically.

For a school place mid-year, contact the council where the new school is. Some academies and voluntary aided schools take applications directly. You get the outcome in writing within 15 school days, and a child offered a place usually starts at the beginning of the next term. If you are moving across a border, it is worth calling the new council before you sign for the new home.

Bin days, recycling rules and bulky collections all change with the borough. For anything you are not taking, book a bulky waste collection with your council before you move. You book and pay for it yourself. We do not take rubbish or clear waste, so plan to have unwanted items gone before the crew arrive.

Prices and rules differ. On 3 November 2026, Hackney listed £24 for 1 to 5 items, with items out by 6am, Monday to Friday. Wandsworth listed £24.90 for up to 4 items, collected from outside only. Southwark collects only your own household items, not things a previous tenant left behind.

• Tell the old council your move date and new address
• Register with the new council, inside its window
• Cancel the old council tax Direct Debit and set up a new one
• Apply for the single person discount again if it applies
• Apply for a resident permit in the new borough
• Book a parking suspension if the van needs one, at each end
• Re-register to vote
• Register with a GP near the new home if needed
• Book any bulky waste collection before moving day

Our London moving checklist puts these in week-by-week order.

A move between neighbouring boroughs is often only a few miles, so the time at each door matters more than the drive. On the rate card, a one-bedroom home over 5 miles comes to about £459, and a two-bedroom home about £1,050, before stairs or extras. Smaller loads can go in our Small Transit (SWB), from £55 an hour with a driver only. How much house removals cost in London explains what changes the figure.

If you live in a flat, the floor, the lift and the parking at each end decide most of the day. Flat removals in London and moving a flat in London cover those. If you are renting, moving out of a rented home in London covers notice and the deposit.

For a quote, send both postcodes, your date and a room-by-room list. You will get an itemised written quote within 24 hours, and the team confirms the final price in writing. Start from our house removals in London page. If the dates between homes do not line up, see removals and storage in London.

Whichever boroughs you are moving between, our house removals in London page has the rate card and the quote form in one place.

Council tax, permits and bins change at the border. Some other records do not care about the borough at all, but they still need your new address. These are the ones people forget because no council reminds them.

Your driving licence and log book

If you drive, tell DVLA. GOV.UK says it does not cost anything to change the address on your licence, and an online application should bring the new licence within a week. You may be asked to prove your identity, usually with a passport or driving licence.

The vehicle log book (V5C) is a separate job. Changing the licence does not change the log book. Updating the V5C is usually free, online or by post, and GOV.UK says to contact DVLA if the new one has not arrived after 4 weeks. You can be fined up to £1,000 for not telling DVLA when your address changes, so do both.

Your car insurer needs the new address as well. A borough move can change the postcode your premium is based on, and where the car is kept overnight.

HMRC

HMRC is the one to tell after you move, not before. GOV.UK says you need to wait until you have moved. You update it through your personal tax account, and it covers Income Tax, National Insurance, Child Benefit and the State Pension in one go.

Your post

A redirection catches the letters you forgot to update. The Post Office says you can apply up to six months before you move and up to six months after. You need the names and dates of birth of everyone whose post is being redirected, and a payment card registered to your old address.

On 5 November 2026 the Post Office listed these UK prices for a personal redirection, VAT exempt. Check the current figure before you apply.

For a move between boroughs, three months is often enough if you update your bank, employer and GP straight away. Choose longer if you have pensions, investments or old accounts that write only once or twice a year.

Gas and electricity suppliers are not tied to a borough, so a move across London does not change your supplier by itself. What changes is the account. Citizens Advice says to give your suppliers at least 48 hours' notice that you are moving, read the meters on the day you leave and keep a note of the readings and the date.

You have 28 days to pay the final bill at the old home. If it shows a credit, you can claim the money back. Citizens Advice says the old supplier should send the final bill within 6 weeks and refund any credit within 10 working days of that bill.

At the new home you are put on the current supplier's standard tariff, called a deemed contract, until you choose otherwise. Read the meters on the day you move in and send them to that supplier. You can switch only from the day you become responsible for the property. If you are on a fixed tariff, ask your supplier whether you can take it with you before you assume there is an exit fee.

Water works differently, because companies serve areas rather than customers. Check your current bill to see who supplies you. Thames Water, for example, says you can tell it about a move as early as 28 days before your move date, through your online account.

Most problems on a borough move are not about the van. They are about one council or company that was never told.

• Telling only the new council. The old account keeps running and the final bill goes to an empty flat
• Leaving the old Direct Debit in place. It does not move to the new account, so cancel it and set up a new one
• Assuming the permit moves with you. It does not. Apply in the new borough as soon as you have proof of address
• Booking a suspension at one end only. Two boroughs means two sets of rules and two lead times
• Forgetting the log book. The licence and the V5C are separate updates
• Paying for council extras you no longer use. If you pay the old council for anything on a subscription, ask whether it can be cancelled or refunded

Put the jobs in the order the rules allow, and they take less than an evening in total.

• Two weeks before: confirm any parking suspensions at both addresses, and tell your energy and water companies the date
• One week before: set up the post redirection, and tell the old council your leaving date if it takes notice in advance
• Moving day: read the meters at both homes and photograph them
• First week after: register with the new council, re-register to vote, tell HMRC and DVLA, and apply for the new parking permit
• First month after: check the final bills from the old council and suppliers, and claim back any credit

If you are still choosing a date, how far ahead to book movers in London explains the lead times at busy times of the month.