Revealed: How you can watch TV without paying £145.50 each year for a licence (and it IS legal) 

  • Viewers who only watch on-demand and catch-up TV do not have to pay a fee
  • It means householders can watch services such as Netflix without a licence
  • However the BBC iPlayer is not exempt from the annual £145.50 payment 

By Stephanie Linning for MailOnline

Published: | Updated:

Householders without a TV licence were offered a way to escape being fined in new rules made public yesterday. 

But there is also a way to avoid paying for a licence all together - and it is completely legal. 

Viewers do not need to pay the annual fee if they only watch TV shows on catch-up or via on-demand services such as Netflix, Amazon Instant Video and Apple TV.

Only viewers who watch programmes at the same time as they are shown on TV need to have a licence. This includes shows watched on laptops, tablets and other devices. File image

Only viewers who watch programmes at the same time as they are shown on TV need to have a licence. This includes shows watched on laptops, tablets and other devices. File image

Only viewers who watch or record programmes at the same time as they are shown on TV need to have a licence. This includes shows watched on laptops, tablets and other devices.

It means a simple change in viewing habits could mean a saving of £145.50 a year.

However fewer than 2 per cent of households currently only watch catch-up TV, a spokeswoman for TV Licencing told the Daily Mirror.

One exception to the on-demand loophole is the BBC iPlayer service, which has required a TV licence since September last year. 

The new rules for magistrates unveiled yesterday mean if householders can show they were not trying to avoid paying and had failed to have a licence for less than six months, then they will be given a conditional discharge.

The change ordered from April by the Sentencing Council means such non-payers of the fee will still be convicted of a criminal offence but not punished. 

Viewers do not need to pay the annual fee if they only watch TV shows on catch-up or via on-demand services such as Netflix, Amazon Instant Video and Apple TV. File image

Viewers do not need to pay the annual fee if they only watch TV shows on catch-up or via on-demand services such as Netflix, Amazon Instant Video and Apple TV. File image

Possible scenarios include those who thought they had a licence or failed to get one by mistake and those who thought someone else in their house had paid. 

Offenders may also be those who had tried but failed to pay and those who paid for a licence immediately after being told they needed one.

There will be higher fines for those who make efforts to avoid paying or who make no attempt to get a licence. Under the rules being replaced, magistrates can fine licence dodgers up to £1,000, although the average amount is £170.

TV Licensing, which collects the fee for the BBC, said the change would not open a loophole and would apply in a very limited number of cases. 

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