Consumer credit authorisation - guidance for housing associations

The aim of this guidance is to assist housing associations both in applying legislation to their businesses and in understanding how and when to get authorised for consumer credit/FCA regulated activities, where appropriate.

This guidance is an update of the 2014 version produced by the National Housing Federation.

It has been revised primarily to take account of the effect that the Mortgage Credit Directive Order 2015 has on secured lending by housing associations and to reflect current Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) requirements. It covers:

• When authorisation is required.
• Activities requiring authorisation.
• A useful table summary of regulated activities.
• Threshold conditions and levels of permission.
• How and when housing associations should apply.
• Updates on compliance.

Failure to comply with the relevant legislation is a criminal offence. It is therefore vital that housing associations take their obligations under the legislation seriously and assess compliance on a regular basis.

Download the guidance