Council Tax explained

Council Tax is a tax paid to your local council for the delivery of local services. It usually applies to all domestic properties, whether owned or rented.

Your council tax bill will depend on what council tax band your property falls into, and the level of council tax set each year by your local council. 

There are eight council tax bands, from A to H, based on your property's value. Band H pays the most and Band A the least. Your property's band is set by the Valuation Office Agency. 

Council Tax bills are based on a charge for each financial year which runs from 1 April to 31 March every year - your council tax liability is calculated on a daily basis.

Who pays Council Tax

You usually pay council tax if you are 18 or over and own or rent a home. 

Council tax is normally paid by the person living in a property There are a few circumstances where the owner is responsible for paying council tax. These include:

• empty homes
• nursing homes and other similar homes
• houses in multiple occupation (HMO) where rooms are let individually

If you are a tenant and think your landlord or somebody else should be paying Council Tax, you should contact us for advice.

Usually at least one person over 18 living at a property is liable to pay the Council Tax.

Sometimes more than one person may be jointly liable to pay the Council Tax. These could be: 

• joint owners
• joint tenants
• residents who are married or live together as husband and wife
• civil partners

If several people live in a property, there is a process for deciding the order of liability to pay the council tax.

The order is:

1. A resident owner-occupier who is the freeholder of all or part of the property
2. A resident owner-occupier who is the leaseholder of all or part of the property
3. A resident tenant
4. A resident who lives in the property and who is not a tenant, but has permission to stay there
5. Any other resident living in the property
6. A mortgagee in possession of an owner’s interest
7. An owner of the property where no one is resident

If you move in or out during the year, you’ll only be charged for the days you’re responsible.