Council Tax Benefit

What is Council Tax benefit?

Council Tax benefit is a social security benefit to help with your Council Tax if you are on a low income. The rules are set nationally, but we administer the scheme.

We use a single claim form for both Housing and Council Tax benefits and process both claims at the same time.

Who can claim Council Tax benefit?

You can claim Council Tax benefit if you are liable to pay the Council Tax and:

• You (and your partner if you have one) are on a low income

or

• You are a single person and have another adult (or adults) on a low income living with you. This is called Second Adult Rebate.

It does not depend on National Insurance contributions and you can apply if you are working, either for an employer or self-employed.

Who cannot get Council Tax benefit?

You cannot get Council Tax benefit :

• On a property that you own in which no-one lives
• If you have savings of over £16000 (unless you also get Guarantee Pension Credit)

How do I claim benefit?

If you are making a claim for Income Support, Employment & Support Allowance or Jobseekers Allowance, the Jobcentre will ask if you would also like to claim Council Tax benefit. They will normally take details over the phone and complete a form which they will send to you to check and return to them. It will then be forwarded to us for processing. You will sometimes be sent a separate claim form which you should complete and return to us.

If you are making a claim for Pension Credit, the Pension Service will ask you about claiming Council Tax benefit.

If you are not claiming Pension Credit, Employment & Support Allowance, Income Support or Jobseekers Allowance etc, you should get a claim form from us or download one. We can also arrange to visit you in your own home to complete the form for you.

How is benefit paid?

We will reduce the amount payable on your Council Tax bill

How much Council Tax benefit can I get?

If you (and your partner if you are a couple) are on a low income, you can get up to the full amount of your Council Tax bill, but it will be reduced if:

• You have other adults in your household, for example grown-up children, other relatives or friends
• Your income is more than the rules say you need to live on

If you are a single person but have other adults who are on a low income living with you, you may get a Second Adult Rebate of up to 25% of your Council Tax bill.

What income is included?

All types of income are usually included (along with your partner's income if you are a couple). Earnings are included, along with tax credits, state benefits, occupational pensions and so on. Some income is not counted, such as child benefit, maintenance payments for children, Attendance Allowance, Disability Living Allowance and War Pension. If you have to pay for child-care whilst you are working, we can ignore up to £300 of your weekly earnings.

How do my savings affect my benefit?

If you (and your partner if you are a couple) have savings of more than £16000, you cannot get Council Tax benefit unless you also get Guarantee Pension Credit.

For people under state pension age, savings of less than £6000 are ignored, but we have to assume a weekly income of £1 for every £250 (or part of £250) that you have between £6000 and the savings limit of £16000.

For people over state pension age, savings of less than £10000 are ignored, but we have to assume a weekly income of £1 for every £500 (or part of £500) that you have between £10000 and the savings limit of £16000.

How are my needs assessed?

We will work out an "applicable amount" based on your personal circumstances. The rules for calculating this are set by the government and the amounts are increased each year. The applicable amount is made up of three parts:-

• A personal allowance for you (and your partner if you are a couple)
• A child allowance for each child that you get Child Benefit for
• If appropriate, one or more "premiums" or "components" which apply to certain people, such as people with disabilities and families

How is my benefit worked out?

We will work out your Council Tax as a weekly amount, that is by dividing your yearly bill by 365 (or 366 in a leap year) and then multiplying the daily charge by seven. The result is known as your "eligible Council Tax".

We will make a deduction from your eligible Council Tax for any adults living in the property who are not financially dependent on you. This is known as a "non-dependant deduction". But if you are registered as blind, getting Attendance Allowance or the care component of the Disability Living Allowance, we will not make a deduction. There is also a 26 week "grace" period for customers aged 65 or over. This means, for example, that if a non-dependant moves in with you, or a non-dependant already living with you starts to earn more money, no change will be made to your claim for 26 weeks.

If you are on Income Support, income-related Employment & Support Allowance, Guaranteed Pension Credit or income-based Jobseekers Allowance, you will get the full amount of your eligible Council Tax, less any non-dependant deductions

If you are not on Income Support, income-related Employment & Support Allowance, Guaranteed Pension Credit or income-based Jobseekers Allowance and your income is more than your applicable amount, we will make a further deduction of 20% of the excess

Examples - how benefit is worked out.

If you are getting Pension Savings Credit, we will use the income figures supplied to us by the Pension Service.

When will my benefit start?

For people under state pension age, your benefit will normally start from the Monday following the date that you first contact us, as long as you return your claim form within one month of this date.

You can also claim through the Jobcentre when making a claim for Income Support, Jobseekers Allowance or Employment & Support Allowance. Your claim will normally be allowed from the Monday following the date that you advise the Jobcentre that you wish to claim help with your council tax, as long as you return your claim form within one month of this date.

Benefit cannot normally be backdated unless you can provide special reasons (known as "good cause") why you could not claim earlier.

For people over state pension age, we will automatically look at your benefit for a 3 month earlier period.

When does my benefit end?

Your benefit will normally carry on until there is a change in circumstances which means that you can no longer get benefit. As your benefit may also increase or decrease if your circumstances change, you must report any change in writing straight away.

What can you expect from us?

We will:

Deal with your claim promptly. Normally this will be within 14 days of receiving all of the information needed to work out your claim

• Work out your claim as accurately as possible and in line with government regulations and council policy
• Notify you in writing about your claim as soon as possible after it has been worked out

What do we need from you?

We need you to:

• Complete your claim form fully and correctly and give us all the supporting evidence that we need
• Report any change in your circumstances, in writing, as soon as you can

Where can I get more information?

If you would like more information about Council Tax benefit, please contact the Benefits Team.