The UK government is considering extending the TV licence fee, now £180 a year, to online streaming services such as Netflix and YouTube, with reports of the plan surfacing on Friday, 16 October 2026.
According to ITV News, the plan would stop people avoiding the fee by watching on phones, tablets or laptops, and could also cover Amazon and Disney+, which are not covered at present.
It has been nicknamed the “YouTube tax” because YouTube is the biggest online video platform in the UK, and no final decisions have been made.
What the TV licence fee currently covers
A licence is required to watch or record live TV on any channel, on any device, and to use BBC iPlayer. That means viewers already need one to watch live events streamed on Netflix or Prime Video, but not on-demand programmes.
The fee rose from £174.50 to £180 on Wednesday, 1 April 2026, a rise of £5.50 tied to inflation.
Licence fee income has fallen by more than £1 billion in real terms over the past decade, and the number of TV licences fell by more than half a million in 2025/26, the BBC‘s 2026 annual report shows.
The BBC has said only 80% of the population pays the fee, although 94% use its services each month.
BBC and government responses to the TV licence fee plan
A Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) statement said ministers are considering options, including reform of the licence fee, but that “no final decisions have been made”. It also set out how the BBC should be funded:
“The BBC must be funded by a model that is sustainable and fair to all those that are paying it,” DCMS said.
The BBC has argued for reform for some time. Its director-general, Matt Brittin, said the corporation is “held back” by the fee, floated a household levy as a possible option and said he wants BBC content on platforms including Netflix, YouTube, TikTok and Spotify.
He described the current rule:
“What we need to look at is the current model. You pay the licence fee if you watch live TV or you’re on iPlayer,” Brittin said.
A BBC spokesperson separately said the corporation’s view on funding was already on record. The charter that governs the BBC expires in December 2027, and a White Paper setting out how it will be governed, regulated and funded from 2028 is expected before Christmas 2026.
The spokesperson said:
“We have consistently argued that the current funding model is outdated and needs reform,” BBC said.
Ministers were reported in May 2026 to be wary of moving the BBC to a subscription or advertising model and to be looking at broadening the existing licence system instead.
The BBC is running a £500 million savings programme that is expected to cost around 2 000 jobs.
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