Council tax is a yearly tax paid to your local council to help cover the cost of services. Local councils use council tax to pay for lots of different public services like rubbish collection and road maintenance.
The amount of council tax you pay mainly depends on your own set of circumstances and which valuation band your property falls into.
It is normally paid over ten months of the year with no payments made in the final two months.
Council tax is only payable on domestic property and not commercial property which has it’s own form of taxation called business rates.
Most local services are paid for by using proceeds from council tax. One big exception is local health services which are covered by the NHS and funded by national insurance payments.
Some of the main local services provided for by council tax revenue include:
If you are aged 18 or older you will usually have to pay council tax.
A council tax bill is initially worked out in the basis that at least two adults will be living in a home. It is the joint responsibility of partners and spouses to pay council tax.
In most cases paying council tax is a legal requirement however in some cases you can qualify to pay less or not at all.
One of the main reasons to be given a council tax reduction is if you are a single person living on your own. If you qualify as the only adult living in your home you will receive a 25% single person discount.
To apply for a council tax discount you need to be the person who is named on the council tax bill. To apply you will need to contact your local council. You can find contact details for your local authority here.
Each case is reviewed on an individual basis taking into consideration a number of factors.
There will be a local authority process to follow to allow for a council tax reduction to be awarded.
The amount of council tax you pay is largely dependent on your living arrangements and the council tax band your property falls into.
Band D is the average council tax band in England with values varying nationally. The responsibility to change council tax values is given to your local authority who can increase or decrease it periodically.
Your properties council tax band can make a substantial difference to the amount you pay.
Council tax bands are administered by the valuation office agency (or VOA) and are worked out based on property values that are not used for business purposes.
The VOA uses the same metrics for all properties and using the open market value of your property on the 1 April 1991 in England and 1 April 2003 in Wales. Property price indexes are not used by the VOA when calculating council tax bands.
Your council tax band will not change if you bought a property at discount through a scheme like right to buy.
The VOA gives your property a letter with A being the cheapest council tax band. As you can see from the council tax band tables below you pay more the higher up the alphabet you get.
| Band | Value at 1 April 1991 |
| A | up to £40,000 |
| B | £40,001 to £52,000 |
| C | £52,001 to £68,000 |
| D | £68,001 to £88,000 |
| E | £88,001 to £120,000 |
| F | £120,001 to £160,000 |
| G | £160,001 to £320,000 |
| H | more than £320,000 |
| Band | Value at 1 April 2003 |
| A | up to £44,000 |
| B | £44,001 to £65,000 |
| C | £65,001 to £91,000 |
| D | £91,001 to £123,000 |
| E | £123,001 to £162,000 |
| F | £162,001 to £223,000 |
| G | £223,001 to £324,000 |
| H | £324,001 to £424,000 |
| I | more than £424,000 |
Students or a person in training may qualify for universal credit.
To qualify for universal credit as a student you must be:
If you are under the age of 21 a claim for universal credit is possible if you are studying for any qualification up to A level (or equivalent) and don’t have parental support.
A claim may also be possible if you are doing a course or studying part time and a student loan or finance option is not available.
You can call the universal credit helpline for assistance and citizens advice offer support through their help to claim service.
Universal credit helpline number 0800 328 5644.
Citizens advice help to claim service can be contacted on 0800 144 8 444. Citizens advice have trained advisors who can help you check your eligibility, collect necessary documents and complete your online application.
As of April 6th 2015, couples have been able to register for the new Marriage Tax Allowance also known as the married couples allowance…