Who can get council tax rebate and rate rebate?
This page covers the whole of the UK
Contents:
What are the council tax or domestic rates?
Almost all householders in Great Britain pay council tax to their local council. In Northern Ireland, householders pay domestic rates to Land and Property Services which collects payments for local councils. Both council tax and domestic rates are taxes on domestic property, based on the property’s value. Bills are issued annually on the 1 April. If you occupy the home for only part of the year, the bill is calculated daily on a pro-rata basis.
Council tax: liability, discounts and exemptions
The person responsible for the council tax is usually the occupier with the highest legal interest in the home, rather than the landlord. For example, an owner-occupier is responsible; if the home is rented the tenant is responsible. There are exceptions: if you live in a house in multiple occupation (HMO), your landlord is responsible although they can recover the cost through your rent. If you have a partner, they are jointly liable with you, even if they have a lesser legal interest in the home.
Your dwelling is exempt from the council tax, so your bill is nil, if all adult occupiers are full-time students, have a severe mental impairment or are sponsored Ukrainian refugees or a combination of these. Although in England, at least one occupier must be a student or have a mental impairment.
Council tax is based on there being two adult occupiers in the home. If only one adult lives there, you get a 25 per cent ‘discount’. Some adults are ignored when deciding whether you qualify for a discount. These include full-time students, people with a severe mental impairment, sponsored Ukrainian refugees and, in Scotland, asylum seekers who entered the UK through a relocation or settlement scheme. After any discount has been applied, you may be able to reduce your bill further by applying for a council tax rebate.
Domestic rates (Northern Ireland): liability and billing
In Northern Ireland, the person responsible for the rates bill is:
- you, if you are the owner-occupier or shared owner
- the Housing Executive or a registered housing association, if they are your landlord
- your landlord, if you are a private tenant and the home you live in:
- is a house in multiple occupation (HMO)
- is let as separate lodgings or apartments
- has a capital value of £150,000 or less
- you, if you are a private tenant in any other case.
If you are a tenant and the rates bill is sent to your landlord, your rent is treated as including rates even if your landlord has not said this. Although your landlord pays the rates bill, you can claim a rate rebate based on your circumstances. The rebate is credited to your landlord’s account and reduces the rent you owe.
What is council tax rebate (CTR)?
Council tax rebate (CTR) helps reduce your council tax bill if you have a low income or belong to a group at greater risk of low income, such as disabled people. It is paid directly into your council tax account, reducing what you owe, or bringing your bill down to nil. CTR is managed by the council that sends your council tax bill and administers housing benefit (HB). In law, CTR is called a 'council tax reduction', although most councils call it 'council tax support'.
The CTR rules about eligibility and the assessment of income and capital mostly follow HB except that CTR can be claimed by owners as well renters and the value of the home is ignored as capital. Most councils administer HB and CTR together. Other differences are described as they arise.
To qualify for CTR, you must meet the conditions below. If you are part of a couple, only one person makes the claim and must meet these conditions:
- make a valid application
- be legally responsible for paying the council tax bill
- be an eligible person
- have no more than £16,000 in capital or combined capital if you are a couple, and
- have a low-enough income.
In Scotland and Wales, and in England for pension-age claims, the UK government or devolved nation sets the rules on what counts as a low-enough income and who is eligible. In England, for working-age claims, local councils can set their own rules on low income and the savings limit, but not on who is an eligible person.
Who is an eligible person?
The rules on who is eligible for CTR or rate rebate are the same as for housing benefit. The only exception is in Scotland, where you are not treated as subject to immigration control if you are a national of an ESCMA or ESC treaty member state and have leave with a ‘no public funds’ condition.
Both CTR and rate rebate count as public funds except:
- discretionary CTR in England and Wales, or
- lone-pensioner allowance in Northern Ireland.
Otherwise, the rules on claiming for a partner or child are the same as for housing benefit. If you can receive UC, SPC or HB for a partner or a child without breaking their leave conditions, you can also safely claim CTR or rate rebate.
How much help will you get with your council tax?
The most you can get towards your council tax is:
- your weekly eligible council tax, minus
- any assumed contribution you receive from other adults who live with you (‘non-dependants’), whether or not they actually pay you. The assumed contribution depends on the non-dependant’s income.
Your eligible council tax is not always the same as your full council tax bill. If you are jointly responsible for the council tax with someone outside your household, such as a joint tenant, it is based on your share of the bill. In Scotland and Wales, and in England for pension-age claims, your eligible council tax is your council tax bill or your share of it, after any discount has been applied. In many English council areas, for working-age claims it is instead a fixed percentage of the bill, or your share of it.
You receive the maximum CTR if you get SPC guarantee credit. In England and Wales, and usually in Scotland, you also receive the maximum CTR if your total income is no more than your maximum UC award. In all other cases, your maximum CTR is reduced by a fixed percentage of any income above your ‘applicable amount’, in a similar way to HB.
Second adult rebates in England and Scotland
In England and Scotland, second adult rebate (SAR) is an alternative type of CTR. You may qualify if you are the owner or tenant and cannot receive a council tax discount because another adult, who is not your lodger, lives with you. This person is known as a ‘second adult’. You may also qualify if you are a full-time student and the second adult means your home is not exempt from council tax.
SAR is worth the cash equivalent of 100, 60 or 30 per cent of the discount you would otherwise have received. The percentage depends on whether the second adult’s income is considered too low for them to contribute fully towards the extra council tax you must pay. You claim SAR as the owner or tenant, but the award is based on the second adult’s income. SAR counts as public funds for you, not for the second adult. If you qualify for both CTR and SAR, you receive whichever gives you the higher amount.
This rebate may help if you are an owner taking part in a rent-free migrant hosting scheme. However, in England, many councils do not include SAR in their local schemes for working-age claims.
Discretionary CTR in England and Wales
In England and Wales, councils can award discretionary CTR (DCTR) if you have a low income or are in a group more likely to have a low income, such as disabled people. Unlike ordinary CTR, DCTR does not count as public funds. It can be awarded if you do not qualify for CTR, or to top up your CTR if you do. In either case, DCTR can reduce your council tax bill to nil. However, you are unlikely to receive DCTR unless you specifically ask for it.
What is rate rebate/rate relief in Northern Ireland?
In Northern Ireland, if you or your partner is liable for rates, you can apply for a rate rebate, also called rate relief. You will only be entitled if:
- you or your partner are under pension age and receive UC
- you, or you and your partner, are pension age and:
- you are an eligible person
- you have no more than £16,000 in capital, or joint capital if you are a couple, or no more than £50,000 for supplementary rate rebate, and
- your income is low enough.
For pension-age claims, your rate rebate, excluding any supplementary rate rebate, is treated as an award of HB, even if you do not pay rent. Supplementary rate rebate is called rate relief and is claimed alongside your HB.
Lone-pensioner allowance
Lone-pensioner allowance (LPA) is a non-means tested rate rebate. You are entitled if you are aged 70 or over and no other adults live with you, disregarding anyone who is severely mentally impaired or qualifies for carer’s allowance. LPA reduces your remaining rates bill by 20 percent after any HB rate rebate and supplementary rate rebate have been applied, whether you qualify for these or not.
How much help will you get with your domestic rates?
For a working-age claim, your maximum rate rebate is the monthly rates for your home, or your share if you are a joint owner or joint tenant. If you have earnings, your maximum rate rebate is reduced by a fixed percentage of the amount by which those earnings exceed your UC work allowance.
For a pension-age claim, your maximum rate rebate is:
- the weekly eligible domestic rates for your home, minus
- any assumed contribution from other adults who live with you ('non-dependants'), whether or not they actually pay you. The assumed contribution depends on the non-dependant’s income.
Your weekly eligible rates are not always the same as your weekly rates bill. If you are a joint owner-occupier or joint tenant, they are based on your share of the weekly bill. You get the maximum rebate if you receive SPC guarantee credit.
If your total income is higher than it would be if you received guarantee credit, your maximum rebate is reduced by a fixed percentage of the excess. If you, or you and your partner jointly, have capital of £50,000 or less and do not receive the maximum rebate, or your rebate is nil after the deduction, you may qualify for supplementary rate rebate.
Reconsiderations and appeals
In Great Britain, the rules about reconsiderations and appeals for CTR largely follow the same rules as for HB, except:
- you must ask for a reconsideration before you can appeal, although you can start an appeal if the council does not respond on time
- the time limit to ask the council for a reconsideration is:
- in England, set by each council in its local CTR scheme rules
- in Wales, one month, or
- in Scotland, two months
- the time limit to appeal to a tribunal is:
- in England and Wales, within two months of the date the council responds to your reconsideration request, or within four months of your original request if the council does not respond, or
- in Scotland, within six weeks of the date the council responds to your reconsideration request, or within two months plus six weeks of your original request if the council does not respond.
CTR appeals go to the Valuation Tribunal for England, the Valuation Tribunal for Wales, or the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland (local taxation chamber). You can appeal about almost anything about your CTR provided it was raised at the reconsideration stage, including in England and Wales, discretionary CTR. Appeal waiting times in England are around nine months.
Rate rebates in Northern Ireland
In Northern Ireland, the rules on reconsiderations and appeals are as follows:
- for working-age claims, you can ask Land and Property Services to reconsider its decision within three months. You cannot appeal to a tribunal, but you can appeal if your UC is refused
- for pension-age claims:
- you can ask for a reconsideration or appeal to a tribunal about your HB rate rebate or supplementary rate rebate. The rules are the same as for HB reconsiderations and appeals
- you can ask the Housing Executive or LPS to reconsider a decision about lone pensioner allowance; the time limit is 28 days
- you can appeal a decision about lone pensioner allowance to the Northern Ireland Valuation Tribunal, but only after reconsideration. You must appeal within 28 days of the reconsidered decision using Form 5 (pdf).
