• Home
• Your Union
• Welfare
  • Student insurance
  • Academic Advice
  • AIS Code of Conduct
  • Financial Advice
  • Housing Advice
    • Accommodation Deposits
    • Harrassment and Illegal Eviction
    • Private Accommodation
    • Safety
    • University Accommodation
  • How to Contact a Student Adviser
  • Protect your things at uni
  • Student Insurance
  • Student Safety Tips
  • Useful Numbers
  • Volunteering
• Be Involved
• Bars
• Shops
• Sports and Societies
• Campaigns
• Student Media
• Contact us
• Shop
• tax

Council Tax is the tax levied on a property by the local council. The amount you pay will depend on the size and location of your property. It is a property tax as opposed to a personal tax. There are special rules for liability for payment by full time students.

You will not be required to pay council tax if you are a full time student living in:

• A house / flat which is solely occupied by full time students
• Halls of Residence
• A House in Multiple Occupation (see below)

You may need to prove to the council that you are a full time student. You can contact the University's registry department for assistance with this.

Houses in multiple occupation (HMO)

These are properties where the tenants live independently of each other. They usually have their own room (quite often with a separate lock and key), separate rental / tenancy agreements and only share facilities such as kitchen and bathroom. In the case of a property being classed as a HMO, the liability for Council Tax falls upon the owner of the property. If you believe that you live in a HMO and that you are being wrongfully charged for Council Tax, you can contact the Council Tax department of your local council and ask for the property to be inspected.

Students living with non-students

If you are a full time student who lives with other non-students or part time students, the property becomes liable for Council Tax. If there is only one non-student living in the property, then a Single Persons Discount will apply to the bill. This means a 25% reduction on the bill. There is no reduction if there is more than one non-student in the property. If the landlord lives in the property with you, then the bill should be sent to, and paid by, the landlord.

It is important to keep up with regular payments, as non-payment of Council Tax is a criminal offence and could result in a prison sentence and a criminal record. If people in the property move out and owe arrears, the council will pursue whomever they have contact details for. So it is important that you make sure that you don't get left to pay the entire amount, as the council is under no legal obligation to find the other people if they have at least one contact.

If you are a student who is entitled to claim Housing Benefit, then you will also be entitled to apply for Council Tax Benefit.

Something to watch out for

Landlords who are liable to pay Council Tax will quite often levy this expense on their tenants. Sometimes they send the bill to the tenants for payment. Once again, if you have any queries about Council Tax liability, contact your local council. Landlords cannot ask you directly to pay Council Tax charges if you are not liable. However, they can try to get around this by increasing the amount of money paid as rent. Remember that if you have a fixed term contract, the landlord cannot charge you extra rent to cover the cost of Council Tax, until the fixed term expires.

Login

Search

Advertisment