Occupied Discounts/Exemptions

 

Apprentice or youth trainee

If a member of your household is an apprentice or youth trainee, you may be able to get discount on your council tax bill.

You may be eligible for 50% discount on your Council Tax bill, if you live alone, or 25% discount if you live with one other adult.  If there are other adults residing at the property, you may still be entitled to a discount depending on their circumstances. 

This discount reduces your Council Tax, water and sewerage charges.

Eligibility

To qualify as an apprentice, you must be:

  • employed to learn a trade, business, profession, office role or vocation
  • undertaking a course of training leading to an accredited qualification
  • paid no more than £256.00 per week (before tax)

To qualify as a youth trainee, you must be:

  • under 25 years of age
  • undertaking a relevant course under an individual training plan

 

Care Leavers

Care leavers may be exempt from paying Council Tax, or may be disregarded from the calculation of the number of adult residents for Council Tax discount purposes

From 1 April 2018, the Scottish Government has introduced new legislation to provide a Council Tax exemption or discount for local authority care leavers.

If a dwelling is occupied only by care leavers or a combination of care leavers, students, recent school leavers, persons under 18 and those affected by a severe mental impairment an exemption may apply.

Otherwise, the care leaver will be disregarded from the calculation of the number of adults in a dwelling when assessing entitlement to a Council Tax discount.

Eligibility

A care leaver is defined as a person who;

  • Is at least 18 years of age but not yet 26 years of age;
  • Was on that person's sixteenth birthday, or at any subsequent time, looked after by a Local Authority; and
  • Is no longer looked after by a Local Authority

 

Carers

If you receive or provide care or support to another person you may be able to get a discount on your council tax.

If you live with one other adult that you provide care for, a 25% discount will apply. 

This discount reduces your Council Tax, water and sewerage charges.

Eligibility

The carer must:

  • be resident in the same house as the person being cared for
  • be providing care for at least 35 hours per week on average
  • not be the partner/spouse of the person being cared for
  • not be a parent caring for their child who is under 18

The person cared for must also be entitled to one of the following benefits:

  • Attendance Allowance (Higher Rate)
  • Disability Living Allowance (Higher Rate of the Care Component)
  • Personal Independence Payment (Daily Living Component at the Enhanced Rate)
  • An increase in Constant Attendance Allowance under the Industrial Injuries or War Pensions Scheme
  • The Highest Rate of Constant Attendance Allowance payable on top of full-rate disablement benefit paid for an industrial injury
  • Armed Forces Independence payment under the Armed Forces and Reserve Forces (Compensation Scheme) Order 2011
  • Child Disability Payment (Highest Rate of Care Component)
  • Daily Living Component of Adult Disability Payment (Enhanced Rate)

 

Disabled Banding Reduction

If a member of your household (an adult or a child), is permanently disabled, you may be able to get a reduction on your council tax bill.

You will be charged at the valuation band below the one your home is in.  For example, if your home is in band D, the band C rate will apply to your Council Tax bill. You will get a part reduction even if your home is in band A.

This reduction applies to your Council Tax, water and sewerage charges.

Eligibility

Your home must have one of the features below which must be of vital or major importance to the disabled person's wellbeing

  • enough indoor space for the disabled person to use a wheelchair, the wheelchair must be used indoors.
  • an extra kitchen or bathroom for the specific needs of the disabled person, a bathroom must contain a bath or shower facility
  • an extra room, not a bathroom, kitchen or toilet, that is predominately used by the disabled person and is required to meet their additional needs e.g. therapy or treatment room

 

Long Term Hospital/Care Home

If a member of your household is in hospital as a long-term patient or in a care home, you may be able to get a discount on your council tax bill.

If one adult remains in the property, a 25% discount will apply. 

This discount reduces your Council Tax, water and sewerage charges.

Eligibility

You can apply if you or a member of your household:

  • has moved into a care home on a permanent basis
  • has moved into hospital on a long-term basis and can no longer be considered as solely or mainly resident in your home (a short stay does not count)

 

Members of Religious Communities

If you are a member of a religious community, you may be able to get a discount on your council tax bill.

You may be eligible for 25% discount if you live with another adult or 50% discount if you live alone or only with others who qualify.  

This discount reduces your Council Tax, water and sewerage.

Eligibility

To qualify, you must:

  • be a member of a religious community whose main occupation is prayer, contemplation, education, the relief of suffering or a range of these
  • have no capital or income of your own (a pension from a former employer is disregarded)
  • depend on the religious community for your material needs

 

Person in detention or prison

If a member of your household is in detention or prison, you may be able to get a discount on your council tax bill.

You may be eligible for 25% discount if one adult remains resident in the property.

This discount reduces your Council Tax, water and sewerage charges.

Eligibility

To qualify you must be detained in a prison, hospital or other place by virtue of a court order in the UK.

Discount is not applicable if you are detained due to non payment of fines.

 

Person receiving child benefit

If a member of your household is 18 but you are still entitled to child benefit for them, you may be able to get 25% discount on your council tax bill.

Eligibility

You must be the only adult in your home other than the person who qualifies for child benefit.  

This discount reduces your Council Tax, water and sewerage charges.

 

Person under 18 years of age

Where all residents of a property are under 18, you will be able to get a 100% exemption on your council tax bill.

If another person aged 18 or over takes up residence in the property, the right to exemption will be lost and he/she will be liable for paying Council Tax.  

This discount reduces your Council Tax, water and sewerage charges.

Eligibility

Any person who has not yet reached the age of 18 will be disregarded for the purpose of calculating the Council Tax charge

 

School Leavers

If a member of your household has left school or college and is under 20 years of age, you may be eligible for a discount on your council tax.

If you live with one other adult who is a school/college leaver, a 25% discount will apply.  If there are other adults residing at the property, you may still be entitled to a discount depending on their circumstances.  Please contact Local Taxes on 01738 477430 for more information.

Eligibility

To qualify as a school leaver you must be:

  • less than 20 years old
  • have left school or college on or after 1 May in any year after undertaking a qualifying course of education
  • have the intention to continue in full-time education

 

Severe Mental Impairment

If a member of your household is classed as severely mentally impaired, you may be able to claim a discount on your council tax.

If a property is solely occupied by a person or people who are severely mentally impaired, the occupant(s) will be exempt from Council Tax charge.  If all but one of the adults living at your property are severely mentally impaired, a 25% discount will apply. 

This discount reduces your Council Tax, water and sewerage charges.

Eligibility

A person will qualify for this discount if they have a severe learning disability or severe mental impairment which appears permanent and they are entitled to one of the following qualifying benefits:

  • Employment and Support Allowance
  • Incapacity Benefit
  • Income Support including a Disability Premium for incapacity for work
  • Disability Living Allowance (Middle or Higher Rate of the Care Component)
  • Personal Independence Payment Daily Living Component
  • Severe Disablement Allowance
  • Attendance Allowance
  • Constant Attendance Allowance payable under the Industrial Injuries or War Pension Scheme
  • An increase in Disablement Pension for Constant Attendance
  • Unemployability Allowance payable under the Industrial Injuries or War Pension Scheme
  • Disability Element or Severe Disability Element of Working Tax Credit
  • Universal Credit under Part 1 of Welfare Reforms Act 2012 which includes an amount to reflect the fact that the person has limited capacity for work and work related activity
  • Armed Forces Independence payment under the Armed Forces and Reserve Forces (Compensation Scheme) Order 2011
  • Child Disability Payment (Middle or Higher Rate of Care Component)
  • Daily Living Component of Adult Disability Payment (Standard or Enhanced Rate)

 

Single Person Discount

Eligibility

A discount of 25% on the Council Tax and Water/Wastewater charges is available to dwellings occupied by only one adult.

For the purposes of Council Tax an adult is defined as an individual who has attained the age of 18 years and has their sole or main residence in the dwelling.

 

Student

A Council Tax exemption or discount may be available if you are a full-time student.

If a property is solely occupied by students, it may be exempt from Council Tax charges.  If all but one of the adults living in a property are students, a 25% discount may apply.  

Any exemption or discount awarded will reduce both your Council Tax and water service charges.

Eligibility

To qualify as a student you must either be:

  • Someone undertaking a specified course at a college or university in the UK or other EU state for 21 hours or more per week for at least 24 weeks; or
  • Someone under 20 studying for a qualification up to A Level, Higher, SHNC, NVQ/SVQ level 3 or equivalent via a course or courses for at least 12 hours a week for at least 3 months; please note that the course may not be taken as a result of your employment, may not be a correspondence course and may not be an evening class; or
  • A foreign language assistant; or
  • A student nurse studying an academic course at university or college

 

Visiting Forces

Where a property is occupied by members of visiting forces, you may be able to claim a discount on your council tax.

A dwelling is exempt from Council Tax if one of the liable parties has a relevant association with a visiting force.  A 25% discount may apply where the member associated with a visiting force is not liable to pay Council Tax and all but one of the adults living in the property has a relevant association with a visiting force.  For example, where a member of a visiting force is lodging with a British citizen, a 25% discount would apply.

This discount reduces your Council Tax, water and sewerage charges.

Eligibility

To have a relevant association a person must be:

  • A member of that force, or a member of a civilian component of the force; or
  • A dependent of a member, provided that the dependent is not a British citizen or is not ordinarily resident in the UK