1) Council Tax Valuation Bands
Council Tax is payable on most dwellings, whether a house, bungalow, flat, maisonette, mobile home, or houseboat, and whether owned or rented. Each dwelling has been allocated to one of eight valuation bands, as shown below, according to its open market value at 1st April 1991.
Band A up to £40,000 Band B £40,001- £52,000
Band C £52,001 - £68,000 Band D £68,001 - £88,000
Band E £88,001 - £120,000 Band F £120,001 - £160,000
Band G £160,001 - £320,000 Band H over £320,000
2) The Liable Person
The Council Tax Payer, or the “liable person”, is responsible for seeing that the Council Tax bill is paid, and is the person who first fits one of the following descriptions, starting with number 1 and working through in numerical order:
1.Resident Freeholder (owner)
2.Resident Leaseholder
3.Resident Statutory or Secure Tenant
4.Resident with a licence to occupy
5.Resident aged 18 years or over
6.Owner – if the property is unoccupied
There can be more than one liable person for a property, e.g. joint resident owners. In addition, married or common law partners of liable persons are equally liable, even if they are not owners or tenants themselves.
3) Discounts
The full Council Tax bill assumes there are two adults (aged 18 or over) living in the property. If only one adult lives in the property as their main home, the bill is reduced by 25%. The Council Tax bill for a property which is no-one’s main home may also be reduced. Please contact us for more information.
Some people will not be counted when looking at the number of adults living in a property, provided they meet certain conditions:-
a) Full-time students, student nurses, apprentices & YTS
trainees;
b)Patients resident in a hospital, care home or nursing home;
c)People who are severely mentally impaired;
d)Residents of certain hostels or night shelters;
e)Careworkers on a low income, and people providing constant care for someone in need who is not their spouse, partner or child aged under 18 years;
f)18 & 19 year olds who are at, or who have just left school;
g)Members of religious communities (i.e. monks and nuns);
e)People in prison (except for non-payment of fines or Council Tax);
f)Members of visiting forces & certain international organisations.
If you have been awarded a discount, you must tell the Council Tax Office within 21 days of any change of circumstances which may affect your entitlement. If you fail to do so, you may be liable to pay a penalty of £70.
4) People With Disabilities (Disablement Relief)
If a disabled person - child or adult - needs an extra room (not a W.C.) or extra space in the dwelling to meet special needs arising from their disability, the Council Tax may be reduced to that of a dwelling in the next band down. This is designed to ensure that people do not pay more Council Tax by virtue of the extra space needed for the disabled person. It only applies to properties in bands B to H. If your home is in Band A the reduction will be to a figure equivalent to five ninths of a Band D property.
5) Exempt Dwellings
Some dwellings may be exempt from Council Tax. The following is a summary of the prescribed classes of exemption and is for guidance only:
A Unoccupied and unfurnished dwelling which requires, or is undergoing, or
has undergone major repair works to make it habitable or is undergoing or
has undergone structural alteration . (With effect from 1/4/13 the discount is 50% for a maximum of 12 months)
B Unoccupied dwelling owned by a charity (exempt for up to 6 months from the
date on which the property was last occupied by, or on behalf of, the charity).
C Unoccupied and unfurnished dwelling (with effect from 1/4/14 the discount is 100% for 1 month from the date on which the property became both unoccupied and unfurnished followed by a 100% charge).
D Dwelling left unoccupied by a person detained in custody.
E Dwelling left unoccupied by an owner or tenant who is now permanently
resident in a hospital or care home.
F Dwelling which has been unoccupied since the death of the person liable to pay
Council Tax (exempt for up to 6 months from the date of grant of probate or
letters of administration where the owner is deceased; different periods may
apply where the deceased was not the owner).
G Unoccupied dwelling where occupation is prohibited by law.
H Unoccupied dwelling held available for occupation by a minister of religion.
I Dwelling left unoccupied by a person receiving care at another dwelling (not a
hospital or care home – see Class E above) which is now their sole or main
residence.
J Dwelling left unoccupied by a person providing care at another dwelling which
is now their sole or main residence.
K Unoccupied dwelling owned and last occupied by a full-time student.
L Unoccupied dwelling which has been taken into possession by a mortgagee.
M Dwelling comprising a hall of residence provided predominantly for the
accommodation of students.
N Dwelling occupied by only one or more students.
O Dwelling owned by the Secretary of State for Defence for the purposes of
armed forces accommodation.
P Dwelling which comprises accommodation for visiting armed forces.
Q Unoccupied dwelling under the administration of a Trustee in Bankruptcy.
R A caravan pitch or boat mooring which is not occupied by a caravan or boat.
S Dwelling occupied only by a person(s) under 18 years of age.
T Unoccupied dwelling situated within the curtilage of another dwelling and
which cannot be let separately.
U Dwelling occupied only by a severely mentally impaired person who would
otherwise be liable for Council Tax.
V A dwelling which is the sole or main residenceof a diplomat.
W An annex, or similar self-contained part of a dwelling, which is occupied by an
elderly or disabled relative of the residents living in the rest of the property.
6) Council Tax Reduction Scheme
Council Tax Reduction replaces Council Tax Benefit from 01/04/13. People who have reached the qualifying age for Pension Credit subject to their income may be entitled to a maximum discount of 100%. The amount of the discount will reduce where the person’s income exceeds the living allowances for the household.
People who are working age subject to their income may be entitled to a maximum discount of 90.0%. The amount of the reduction will reduce where the person’s income exceeds the living allowance for the household. Information and application forms are available from:-
Wyre Forest Customer Service Centre, Kidderminster Town Hall, Vicar St, Kidderminster DY10 1JX