TV Licensing
- Home /
- Check /
- For your home /
- Armed forces personnel
Armed forces personnel
In Ministry of Defence (MOD) accommodation, on or off base, you need to be covered by a TV Licence to watch or record television programmes as they’re being shown on TV, no matter what device you use. This includes computers, laptops, TVs, mobile phones, games consoles, digital boxes and DVD/VHS recorders.
You are not usually covered by your home TV Licence while living on base. You’re only covered by your home licence if you watch TV using a device that’s powered solely by its own internal batteries, and it is not plugged into the mains or an aerial.
If you’ve bought a TV Licence and you’re posted to another location in the UK, you need to let us know so we can transfer your TV Licence to your new address.
If you do not need a TV Licence, please let us know, or if you already have one but no longer need it, you may be entitled to a refund. See below for more details.
You can update your contact details at any time online with your TV Licence number to hand.
The MOD fully supports us in administering TV Licensing legislation.
It costs £145.50 for colour & £49.00 for a black and white TV Licence.
Your base’s TV Licence will cover |
|
|---|---|
| Working areas | Cookhouse, guardroom, classrooms and communal areas in junior ranks accommodation blocks. |
Your base’s TV Licence won’t cover you if |
|
|---|---|
| You live in service family or single living accommodation | You need to be licensed separately. |
| You live in a multi-occupancy room | You only need one TV Licence to cover all TV sets in each room. |
| You’re part of a non-service organisation (e.g. a contractor) | You must be covered by a separate TV Licence. One TV Licence is required for each room or office where TV is being used. |
| You’re a member of the visiting forces and you watch only non-UK satellite TV programmes |
If you watch or record television programmes that are broadcast from outside the UK, you still need a TV Licence. The exception is if you are watching programmes that are only available to UK audiences on the internet and are not broadcast as part of a satellite or other domestic distribution service. |
You don’t need a TV Licence if: |
|
|---|---|
| You’re posted overseas |
You can claim a refund for every three consecutive months that you don't use your TV Licence. This is provided that you don’t need to watch or record TV again in the UK before it expires. You have up to two years from the expiry date of your TV Licence to claim your refund. To apply for a refund, please visit the refunds page. |
| You watch TV in communal areas | Responsibility for licensing communal areas within messes, accommodation blocks, clubs or third party (contractors) accommodation lies with the unit, mess or club manager or contractor. |
| You’re stationed outside the UK |
Those stationed abroad do not require a TV Licence. |
| You only watch ‘Catch-up’ TV or ‘video clips’ |
You don’t need a TV Licence to watch programmes after they’ve been shown on TV, like those on YouTube or 4oD. If you’re watching programmes online at the same time as they are shown on TV, like iPlayer live streaming, you’ll need to be covered by a TV Licence. |
