How much Council Tax Support you can get depends on:
- your income and savings
- the size of your family
- if you have other adults living with you and their income
- the amount of council tax you have to pay, and
- if you are working age or pension age.
Household income and the size of your family
In general the lower your income the more your Council Tax bill can be reduced by Council Tax Support.
We use set amounts to work out how much your household needs to live on (called your applicable amount), and work out the difference between this and your household income. If your income is greater than your applicable amount, you are expected to pay 20% of this ‘excess income’ towards your Council Tax.
The rules for Council Tax Support changed in April 2017 and we will now only include a maximum of two children in the calculation of Council Tax Support for new applicants. This means that if you make a new application for Council Tax Support:
- the number of dependent children that will be included in your calculation will be limited to two
- any child born after April 2017 will not be taken into account in the calculation of your Council Tax Support if you already have two children.
This will also apply if you stop claiming Council Tax Support and then make a new application after 1 April 2017. There are some exceptions to this including multiple births and adoption.
We also no longer include the Family Premium in calculating Council Tax Support for new applicants. This does not affect those on Universal Credit, Income Support, income-related Employment and Support allowance or income based Jobseeker’s Allowance.
If you have other adults living with you
You may get less help if you have other adults (non-dependants) living with you.
Working age people and Council Tax Support
Council Tax Support won’t cover the whole Council Tax bill.
All working age people must pay at least 10% of the bill, even if they get benefits or have a low income.
If you or your partner have more than £6,000 in savings, you will not be able to get any council tax support.
Pension age people and Council Tax Support
For Council Tax Support, pension age means anyone who has reached the qualifying age for Pension Credit.
If you are pension age, Council Tax Support can cover the whole of your Council Tax bill, depending on your income and household circumstances.
Please note, if you are pension age and in receipt of a working age benefit; for example, Income Support, Jobseeker’s Allowance (income-based) or Employment and Support Allowance (income-related), you will be treated as a working age applicant and Council Tax Support won’t cover the whole Council Tax bill.
If you have savings of more than £10,000, and take into account £1 per week for every £500 over £10,000. If you have savings of more than £16,000, you can’t normally get Council Tax Support (unless you receive the guarantee credit element of Pension Credit).
Second adult rebate
Second adult rebate is only available for applicants who are of pension age.
Second adult rebate is Council Tax Support that is paid when you share your home with another adult, but the second adult in the property is on a low income.
It is paid based on their income and can cover up to 25% of your Council Tax charge.
The amount of second adult rebate you can get depends on
- the Council Tax you have to pay, and
- the combined gross income of any second adults
You may get second adult rebate if you share your home with one or more adults who are
- not your partner or civil partner
- aged 18 or over
- not paying you rent
- not paying Council Tax themselves
- not a joint tenant or owner with you, and
- on a low income
Examples of second adults include grown up children, friends and relatives.
Your income and savings won’t affect second adult rebate. How much you can get depends on the income of the second adult(s). If there is more than one second adult in the property, their income is added together to work out this award.
The Council Tax payer must apply for second adult rebate. To make an application you will need to fill in an application form and give full details of the second adult’s income and savings.
If you are a full-time student and share your home with one or more adults who are on a low income, you may claim up to 100% second adult rebate.
Permalink