Help with council tax

What is council tax?

Council tax is a charge made by your local authority to cover services which they provide for you. It applies to England, Scotland and Wales. The amount of council tax that you must pay varies from authority to authority but all assessments are based on the property band that applies to your home.

Each dwelling in Great Britain is given a valuation then placed on a valuation list in one of eight broad valuation bands, starting with the lowest, band A to the highest, band H. The band that applies to your dwelling will be written on your council tax bill.

There is no council tax in Northern Ireland, which still has a rating system. You can find out more about this from the Northern Ireland Housing Executive website at www.nihe.gov.uk/housing_benefit/ and the Land and Property Services website at www.lpsni.gov.uk/.

The Scottish Government proposes abolishing council tax in Scotland and replacing it with a local income tax, within the term of the current Scottish Parliament.

Help with council tax bills

If you are liable to pay council tax you may be able to reduce the amount that you have to pay by claiming council tax benefit, a discount, a reduction for disability or an exemption.

1. Council tax benefit

You can get two types of benefit. 

• Main council tax benefit - You can get this if you are on a low income but your benefit tapers off instead of stopping altogether when your income goes above income support levels. 
• Second adult rebate - This is also known as alternative maximum council tax benefit. It is paid if you have someone living with you, other than your partner,  whose income is low (e.g. if he or she is on income support or in a low paid job). This benefit is assessed on their income not yours - even though it is actually paid to you.

You also have to pass the habitual residence test and have a right to reside to get either of these benefits.

The habitual residence test and the right to reside

The term "right to reside" is not defined but is dependent on your immigration status and nationality. You might have a right to reside under United Kingdom rules, EC law or because you are a British citizen.

The habitual residence test is a test to see if you normally live in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Republic of Ireland or the Isle of Man). The test will be applied if you have been living abroad.

There is no legal definition of 'habitual residence'. Relevant factors are where you normally live, where you expect to live in future, your reasons for coming to this country, the length of time spent abroad before you came here, and any ties you still have with the country where you have come from.

However, the test should not be applied if someone:

• is an EC national with 'worker status', or the 'right to reside' (under EC worker legislation); or
• has refugee status; or
• has exceptional leave to remain or enter.

If these do not apply, a Decision Maker (DM) will decide whether you are habitually resident or not. Get advice if you fail this test.

How do I claim council tax benefit?

You can claim council tax benefit at the same time as you claim income support or income-based jobseeker's allowance. You can also claim using a form supplied by your local authority.

How much is council tax benefit?

The amount you get will vary depending on your circumstances. You can view the current benefit rates on our website at www.disabilityalliance.org/benrate.htm.

Your council tax benefit may also be affected if you have any other adults living with you apart from your partner.

If you find work and are on income support or income-based jobseeker's allowance your council tax benefit can continue at your old rate for four weeks. 

2. Council tax discounts

A normal council tax bill assumes two occupiers. 50% of any charge is for the property itself and 50% is for these two occupiers.

You can get a discount of 25% off your bill if you are the only person living in your home or if all the other occupiers are disregarded for council tax purposes. You can get a 50% discount off your bill if you and all the other occupiers are disregarded for council tax purposes.

Those who are disregarded include:

• people who are ‘severely mentally impaired’ (see council tax exemptions below for what this means).
• carers.
• people in a hospital, a care home, or certain kinds of hostel.
• anyone whose ‘sole or main residence’ is elsewhere.
• young people, students, student nurses, youth trainees, apprentices, and others.

Second homes

If you have a second home your property may have a discount of up to 50%. However your council has the power to give you a discount of less than 50%, or no discount at all.

How do I claim council tax discount?

Contact your local authority.

3. Council tax reduction for disability

You can get a reduction on your bill if you or someone in the home is substantially and permanently disabled and one of the following applies:

• he or she has a room which is used to meet their special needs e.g. for the purposes of dialysis, treatment or for the storage of equipment.
• he or she has a second bathroom or kitchen used to meet their special needs
• he or she needs to use a wheelchair to get around the house.

If any of these apply, the bill for your dwelling is reduced to the next lowest band. If you are already in a Band A property, and get a disability reduction, you will have your bill reduced by one sixth.

Disability reductions are available in all types of dwellings, including care homes and hostels.

In Scotland, the council water charge can also be reduced under this scheme.

There is no time limit for backdating this reduction.

There have been a number of recent court decisions affecting the disability reduction scheme. You can view summaries of these and the full decisions on our case law page at www.disabilityalliance.org/caselaw.htm.

How do I claim council tax reduction for disability?

Contact your local authority.

4. Council tax exemptions

Your property may be exempt from council tax charges altogether. Exemptions include:

• if you leave your property empty (whether furnished or not) because you are now resident in a hospital, a care home or a hostel where personal care is provided.
• if you leave your property empty (whether furnished or not) because you are now resident elsewhere for the purpose of receiving or providing personal care due to old age, disablement, illness, past or present alcohol or drug dependence, or past or present mental disorder.
• If you (and everyone else living with you) are severely mentally impaired and no one else in the property is liable to pay council tax. Severely mentally impaired means you have a 'severe impairment of intelligence and social functioning (however caused) which appears to be permanent’; and have a certificate from a registered medical practitioner confirming this. You must also be entitled to one of the following:

1. disability living allowance (DLA) middle or highest rate care component.
2. attendance allowance (AA), constant attendance allowance (paid as part of industrial injuries benefits or war pensions) or an equivalent benefit.
3. incapacity benefit (any rate).
4. severe disablement allowance.
5. income support including a disability premium due to incapacity (or your partner has a disability premium for them included in their income-based jobseeker’s allowance).
6. you are over state pension age and would have been entitled to one of the above benefits if you were under state pension age.

• you live in a housing association trial flat for pensioners or for people with disabilities (this applies to Scotland only).
• your dwelling is one where one occupant is a ‘dependent relative’ of someone who is resident in another part of the property (this applies to England and Wales only).

5. Students and council tax

If you are a full time student you do not normally have to pay council tax. If you have a non-student partner, although you are not liable to pay council tax, your partner is. He or she may be able to get council tax benefit for both of you or a discount.

If you live in a property which is wholly occupied by students (including students temporarily absent from their course) the property is exempt from council tax. You also do not have to pay council tax if you live in a student hall of residence.

If you share a property with non-students the non-students will be liable to pay council tax but you will not. For those non-students who do have to pay you are disregarded for council tax discount purposes (see the section on council tax discounts above).

The only situation where you should be liable to pay council tax is where you own a property, live in it yourself and also sublet it to non-students. In this case it is you who will be liable for council tax, not your tenants. You may, however, still be able to get help with paying your council tax bill. You may be able to get a discount or a reduction for disability. You could possibly get main council tax benefit (if you are eligible) or second adult rebate.

You are eligible for council tax benefit as a student if you:

• get income support (IS) or income-based jobseeker’s allowance (JSA).
• qualify for disabled students’ allowance because of deafness.
• are a lone parent or are over 60.
• qualify for a disability premium or severe disability premium.
• have been incapable of work (or entitled to statutory sick pay (SSP) for 28 weeks (2 or more periods of incapacity can be added together if they are no more than 8 weeks apart). See Factsheet F25 - incapacity benefit - the personal capability assessment test. This will only apply to new claimants until employment and support allowance is introduced in October 2008.
• are one of a couple and your partner is not a student (your partner can claim).
• are one of a couple, your partner is also a student and you have a dependent child. You will be eligible throughout the course (not just in the long vacations as for JSA and IS).
• are temporarily waiting to return to your course after an agreed break because you were ill or had to care for someone. You can get council tax benefit once you have recovered or your caring responsibilities have ended until either the date you return to your course or the date your educational establishment has agreed that you can return to your course, whichever is earlier, but only for a maximum period of one year and providing you are not eligible for a student loan or grant during this time.
• are under 19 and a full-time student on a non-advanced course or are a qualifying young person for child benefit purposes.

Where can I get more help and information?

You can get help at a local advice centre, such as a citizen's advice bureau. You can get more information about this from our factsheet F15, Finding a local advice centre, which is available at www.disabilityalliance.org/f15.htm.

You can find out more information about council tax benefits and discounts in Disability Alliance's Disability Rights Handbook, available to buy at www.disabilityalliance.org/drh33.htm.

If you just want to know more about the personal allowances and premiums used when calculating council tax benefit see our Factsheet F45 - income support.

You can find out more about the employment and support allowance factsheets F31 - F34 and in Disability Alliance's Employment and support allowance guide. These are available on our website at www.disabilityalliance.org/esa.htm.

You can obtain copies of our factsheets by contacting Disability Alliance on  020 7247 8776 (voice and minicom) or by fax on 020 7247 8765.

If you want to search the web try going to www.direct.gov.uk and searching for information on council tax. Your local authority may also provide information about council tax on its own website.

April 2008