Council Tax Benefit
What help can I get to pay my Council Tax?
There are two types of Council Tax Benefit.
Main Council Tax Benefit
Second Adult Rebate.
This section tells you how to claim them.
Which can I claim?
Council Tax Benefit
You can claim Council Tax Benefit if you are:
- on Income Support or Jobseeker's Allowance;
- working and on low pay (this includes people who are selfemployed); or
- on a low income.
For example, you might only get a retirement pension or be getting other social security benefits, like Incapacity Benefit. But, you cannot get Council Tax Benefit if:
- you are a student; or
- you, or you and your partner between you, have more than £l6,000 in savings (a partner is someone you are married to, or someone you live with as if you are married to them).
But there are some exceptions.
Please see the guidance for students for more information.
There is no fixed upper capital limit for pensioners on Pension Credit, although capital is taken into account. For more information contact the Pension Service
on 0845 3000 168
Second Adult Rebate
Second Adult Rebate is another way to help you pay less Council Tax. It is not based on the money you have, but on the money other people who live with you have. These people are called 'non-dependants'. A non-dependant could be someone like a relative or a friend. You may be able to get Second Adult Rebate if there are other people living in your home who are on a low income or Income Support. But, you cannot claim it if you are married or have a partner.
Please note:
You cannot get Council Tax Benefit and Second Adult Rebate at the same time. If you qualify for both, we will give you the one that reduces your Council Tax the most. To be classed as a second adult, the non-dependant must not be:
- liable for Council Tax;
- a joint owner or tenant with you;
- your married or unmarried partner; or
- living with someone who is a joint tenant or owner-occupier with you.
You will need to make a claim for Second Adult Rebate, unless you have already claimed Council Tax Benefit. We will take account of the income of the second adult when deciding whether you can get Second Adult Rebate. The maximum amount that can be awarded is 25% of the Council Tax bill.
More information about the Second Adult Rebate can be found by clicking here.
How Do I Claim?
- If you claim Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance - Your Jobcentre Plus office will give you a form HCTB1 to fill in to claim Council Tax Benefit. You should fill in the form and send it back to us straightaway so that we can work out your benefit.
- If you are on a low income - You can claim by filling in one of our claim forms and giving us the proof we need to assess your claim.
You can get the claim form from us. Please note:
- If you have difficulty making a claim because you are elderly or disabled, we may be able to visit you at home. Please contact us directly for help.
What proof do I need to give you?
If you get Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance we need proof of your and your partner's National Insurance number, along with proof of the benefits you receive. We may also ask you to provide proof of identity for both of you. Our form tells you what you need to provide, but if you're not sure
you can always contact us for help.
If you are on a low income we need proof of your and your partner's National Insurance number, and we may also ask you to provide proof of identity for
both of you. We also need to see proof of the following:
- Social security benefits
This means things like: - Incapacity benefit;
- State Retirement Pension; and
- Child Benefit.
These are just a few examples. We really need to know about all the different kinds of income you get. If you're not sure, tell us anyway.
If you are on a low income we also need to see proof of all your bank accounts, along with proof of any savings or investments you have. If you're not sure, tell us.
What if I haven't got all the proof you need?
You should send your claim form in anyway. Don't delay sending it in if the proof we ask for isn't available at the moment. You can send the information in later, but we cannot work out your benefit without it.
What should I do about my Council Tax bill while I'm waiting for you to work out my Council Tax Benefit?
You should try to pay the instalments. But, if you are not able to pay, please contact your Council Tax office for advice.
What happens if there are other people living with me?
If you have friends, relatives or anyone over 18 living in your home, you may get less Council Tax benefit. These people are called 'non-dependants'.
We may take an amount out of your benefit for each non-dependant who lives in your home.
Non-dependants do not include:
- your partner;
- a child you get Child Benefit for;
- people under 18;
- people in full-time education; or
- people on youth training schemes.
We will not take any money out of your benefit for non-dependants if: - you get Attendance Allowance;
- you get the care part of Disability Living Allowance;
- you are registered blind;
- the non-dependant is a paid carer provided by a charitable or voluntary organisation; or
- the non-dependant is under 25, and on Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance.
Please see the other people in your household page for more information.
How much Council Tax Benefit can I get?
You may be able to get Council Tax Benefit for the full amount of Council Tax that you have to pay but this depends on your income and whether you have other people living in your house.
How is my Council Tax Benefit worked out?
If you get Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, you will get the full amount of your Council Tax as benefit after we have taken off deductions for your non-dependants.
In all other cases, we work out your Council Tax Benefit by comparing the money you get each week with your 'applicable amount'. Your applicable amount is what the Government says you and your family need to live on each week. The applicable amount will be higher for some people - for example, if you are disabled or if you are a one-parent family.
When we have worked out what money you get each week, if it's less than, or the same as, the applicable amount, you will get the full amount of Council Tax Benefit. If this happens, you should claim Income Support or Jobseeker's Allowance as you may get more help.
What money do you count when you work out my benefit?
We count any money you have coming in.
This includes things like:
- social security benefits;
- maintenance;
- works pension; and
- wages.
We count the money you earn from work after money has been taken out for:
- tax and National Insurance contributions; and
- half of any money you pay into a pension fund.
If you work we will need to see:
- your last five payslips if you are paid every week; or
- your last two payslips if you are paid every month.
If you are self-employed, we usually want to see your recent accounts.
If you cannot provide them, get in touch with us for more advice.
We ignore some of your wages when we work out your benefit. We
do not count the first:
- £5 of the money you earn each week, if you are single;
- £10 of the money you earn each week, if you are a couple;
- £20 of the money you earn each week, if you are disabled; or
- £25 of the money you earn each week, if you are a single parent.
If you work, you may find the Starting Work section useful.
Sometimes, we ignore different amounts from other types of income and benefits.
For example, we ignore the first £15 of any maintenance payments you receive if you have dependent children.
We also ignore things like:
- Disability Living Allowance;
- Attendance Allowance; and
- Mobility Allowance.
These are just a few examples.
There is no fixed upper capital limit for pensioners on Pension Credit, although capital is taken into account. For more information contact the Pension Service
on 0845 3000 168.
What happens if I have savings or investments?
That depends on how much you have.
Government rules say that if you, and your partner if you are a couple, have savings or investments of more than £16,000, you cannot get Council Tax Benefit.
If you or your partner are under 60 and have £3,000 or less, it will not affect your claim.
If you or your partner are under 60 and have between £3,000 and £16,000, it will affect how much Council Tax Benefit you will get.
For every £250 (or part of £250) you have over £3,000, we add £1 to the money we count each week when working out your benefit. This is called 'tariff income'.
If you or your partner are over 60 and have £6,000 or less, it will not affect your claim.
If you or your partner are aged 60 or over, we will only use tariff income if you have between £6,000 and £16,000.
For every £500 (or part of £500) you have over £6,000, we add £1 to the money we count each week when working out your benefit.
How long will it take you to work out my claim?
That depends on how quickly you send in all the information and how busy we are when you make your claim. We will send you a letter telling you how we have worked out your Council Tax Benefit or Second Adult Rebate. Please check the information in this letter very carefully. If you think there is anything wrong, you must tell us straightaway.
When will my benefit start?
If you qualify, your benefit will usually start from the Monday after we get your claim form. But, if you think your benefit should start earlier, you need to write
to us and tell us: the date you think your benefit should start and the reason why you did not claim earlier.
If you get benefit from an earlier date, it is called 'backdating'. You must show that there was 'good cause' for not having made your claim earlier, and the maximum time we can go back is 52 weeks from the date you ask us to backdate your benefit.
Please visit the Backdating page for more information.
How will you pay me?
We will pay your Council Tax Benefit straight to your Council Tax account. You will get a bill which shows the amount you have to pay after we have awarded the benefit.
What should I do if anything changes when I'm getting benefit?
You should tell us straightaway if your circumstances change. It might affect how much you get, and if you don't tell us you may lose benefit. If you don't tell us about a change and we pay you too much benefit, you may have to pay it back. You must tell us about the following changes.
Please tell us if:
- you start or stop getting Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance;
- you start or stop getting any tax credits;
- the money you or your partner gets increases or decreases;
- the money any non-dependants get increases or decreases; or
- there are any other changes in the money that people in your home get. For example, if someone starts getting Disability Living Allowance.
- you change your address;
- the number of people in your home changes (for example, someone has a baby or someone moves out);
- a partner comes to live with you; or
- a partner leaves.
- go into hospital; or
- leave the property for longer than 13 weeks.
- you, or your partner, become a student or stop being a student; or
- the amount of savings or investments you have changes.
You do not have to tell us about changes in age, for example, if one of your children becomes 11, as we will have this information already. If you are not sure whether any changes affect your benefit, tell us anyway.
What happens if you give me too much money?
If we give you too much benefit or Second Adult Rebate, it is called an 'excess benefit'.
If there is an excess benefit, we will send you a letter which tells you:
- why we gave you too much benefit;
- how much the excess benefit is;
- if you have to pay back the amount; and
- how you can appeal if you think this is wrong.
In most cases we will send you a revised Council Tax bill, and you will usually have to pay more Council Tax. Please visit the Overpayments section for more information.
Download Claim Form
Click here to download the Council Tax/Housing Benefit and Second Adult Rebate form (PDF Format).
What can I do if I don't agree with your decision?
If you don't agree with our decision, you can ask us to look at it
again. Our letters tell you what your rights are.
Please see 'What to do if you disagree with a Housing Benefit or
Council Tax Benefit decision' for more detailed information.
Where can I get help?
You can always contact us for help and advice.
Or, you could contact your local Citizens Advice Bureau or Welfare
Rights Service.
Last modified: 14 November 2008
