Council Tax Support
Council Tax Support helps you pay some of your Council Tax if you are on a low income or claiming certain benefits.
Can I claim?
You can claim whether you own your home or rent, or whether you’re working or unemployed.
To qualify, you must be:
- on a low income
- the person responsible for paying the Council Tax
If you have claimed for Universal Credit, which includes housing costs, you do not need to claim Council Tax Support as we will receive a notification directly from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). However, if after 4 weeks you have not received an amended Council Tax bill which includes Council Tax Support you will need to apply for Council Tax Support below.
How much am I entitled to?
Working age entitlement
If you are of working age the maximum amount of Council Tax Support you can receive is 84% of the Council Tax bill (capped at band B). How much you receive depends on your monthly net earned income:
| Income band | Monthly net earned income | Reduction in Council Tax |
| 1 | No earned income | 84% |
| 2 | Between £0 and £400 | 60% |
| 3 | Between £400.01 and £800 | 40% |
| 5 | Between £800.01 and £1200 | 20% |
| - | Over £1200 | 0% |
When we calculate your entitlement, we will convert your monthly earned income to a weekly figure and this will be shown on your notification letter.
Additional allowances for working age
The make-up of your household may affect the earned income banding:
- For couples, the earned income bands will be extended by £50 per week.
- For households with children, the earned income bands will be extended by £25 per child per week.
If you have non-dependants living with you, we will deduct £20 per week for someone working 16 hours or more per week. We will deduct £5 per week for someone who is in receipt of benefits (including Universal Credit) and/or working less than 16 hours per week, or not working at all.
There is also a minimum income floor for self-employed customers, which is in line with Universal Credit.
Pensionable age entitlement
If you are of pensionable age, you may be entitled to up to 100% of the Council Tax bill. This is based on your income and savings. You must have less than £16,000 in savings to be eligible for any Council Tax Support.
You can use an independent benefits calculator on GOV.UK to check if you can apply for Council Tax Support.
How to apply
You can apply online for Council Tax Support.
Things we need to know when you apply:
- National Insurance number for you (and your partner if applicable)
- Full name and dates of birth of everyone in your household.
- Your household income, savings, investments and expenses – including things like childcare costs and private pension contributions.
You will be able to upload any evidence whilst making your application.
You can save your application at various stages and finish it later. If you save your details part way through, you will be given a Citizen Access Benefits key code. Make a note of this as you'll need it to log back into your form.
If you have saved your application, you must complete and submit it within 14 days or your details will be removed.
Read our privacy notice which tells you how we use your data
How do I log back in to my form?
Use the 'Apply or login' button above and select 'Retrieve a claim I have started'. You will need to enter the Citizen Access Benefits key code you received when you saved your application.
What happens next?
We will let you know what your award is once we have processed your claim.
If you are not happy with our decision about your claim or you think the information is wrong, you can submit an appeal.
If your circumstances change
If your circumstances change please tell us as it could affect what you are entitled to.