Council tax discounts

Single occupier discount

If you are the only adult living in a property then you qualify for a 25 per cent discount on your council tax bill.

Apply for the single occupier discount

Some people are disregarded for council tax purposes. This means that we will not count them when we decide how many people aged 18 or over, live in your property.

We may be able to give you a council tax discount if someone in your home is a(n):

Apprentice

• They must be employed for the purpose of learning a trade, business, profession, office job or vocation
• They must be doing a National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) that relates to their chosen work
• They must be earning or receiving an allowance of no more than £195 per week

Download the apprentice discount application form

Carer

• The carer must live in the same dwelling as the person they are caring for
• They must provide care for an average of at least 35 hours per week
• The person being cared for must be receiving either an attendance allowance or the middle or higher rate of the care component of disability living allowance
• They cannot be the partner or child (if under the age of 18) of the carer

Download the carers discount application form

Care worker

• The care worker must be providing care and support to one or more people for at least 24 hours per week
• They must be employed either by the crown, a charity, a local authority or by the person they are caring for
• They must be paid no more than £44 per week
• They must be living in premises provided by the agency they are employed by or by the person they are caring for
• If the person they are caring for employs them, they must have been introduced to them by a charity

Hospital patient

• A person must have their 'sole or main residence' in a National Health Service hospital. That is, the stay in hospital must be considered permanent, as they are unable to return home

Job-related 

If you live in job-related accommodation but remain liable for council tax in another property, you may be eligible for a 50 per cent, job-related discount.

The discount applies to your job-related accommodation, providing both of your addresses are in either England, Wales or Scotland.

You must meet the following criteria to claim the job-related discount:

• you must live in the job-related accommodation in order to properly perform your work duties
• the accommodation has been provided in order for you to better perform your work duties, and your employer routinely provides accommodation for its employees for this purpose
• you live in the job-related accommodation due to special security arrangements or as a result of a specific threat to your security

If you live in job-related accommodation provided by a company of which you're a director (or you're a director of an associated company), the first two bullet points above do not apply providing you meet one of the following criteria:

• you're a full-time, working director of the company
• the company is not-for-profit, does not conduct a trade and its functions do not wholly or mainly consist of holding investments or other property
• the company was established for only charitable purposes 

For more information on the job-related discount - and to apply - email council.tax@rugby.gov.uk with details of your circumstances, together with supporting evidence (eg contract of employment). We can then tailor the information we provide to your circumstances.

Member of religious community

• The person must be a member of a religious community whose principal occupations consist of prayer, contemplation, education or the relief of suffering
• They must be financially dependent on the community to provide for their material needs. (Any pension from a former employment would not disqualify a person from satisfying this)

Member of visiting forces

• The person must have an association with an organisation designated under Part 1 of the Visiting Forces Act 1952

Patient in nursing or care homes

• A person must have their 'sole or main residence' in a nursing or residential care home. That is, the stay in the home must be considered permanent, as they are unable to return to their own home
• The home must be a residential care home, nursing home, or mental nursing home that is registered under the Registered Homes Act 1984. Or a bail or probation hostel that is providing care because of old age, disability, past or present alcohol or drug dependency, or past or present mental disorder

Person who is severely mentally impaired

The regulations define a severely mentally impaired person as having a severe impairment of intelligence and social functioning (however caused), which appears to be permanent.

• A Registered Medical Practitioner, for example a doctor or consultant, must sign a certificate confirming that the person is severely mentally impaired

• The person must be entitled to, one of the following benefits:

1. Incapacity benefit
2. Attendance allowance
3. Constant attendance allowance
4. Severe disablement allowance
5. The care component of disability living allowance paid at either the middle or higher rate
6. Increased disablement pension (owing to need for constant attendance)
7. Disabled persons tax credit
8. Unemployability supplement or allowance
9. Income support (where the applicable amount includes a disability premium)

Download our severely mentally impaired discount application form

Prisoner

• Anyone in any of the situations listed below, for any offence except for non-payment of council tax, or non-payment of fines.
• Detained in prison, hospital or other place by order of a court
• Detained pending deportation under the Immigration Act 1971
• Detained under relevant parts of the Mental Health Act 1983
• Detained under the Army Act 1955, Air Force Act 1955 or Naval Discipline Act 1957

School or college leaver

• They must remain under the age of 20.
• They must have attended a full time or qualifying course of education until at least 30 April of that academic year
• They will be disregarded until the 1 November of the calendar year they leave school or college.
• They do not have to be continuing in further or higher education after leaving school or college to qualify for the discount.

Student nurse

• They must be on course which leads to a first registration on Parts 1 to 6 or 8, under Section 10 of the Nurses, Midwives and Health Visitors Act 1979
• They must be studying at either a college of nursing or midwifery or a college of health

Young person still in receipt of child benefit

• The person will be disregarded if they are 18 and their parent or guardian is receiving Child Benefit for them
• Youth training trainee
• They must be under 25
• They must be undertaking training that conforms to an individual training plan arranged under Section 2 of the Employment and Training Act 1973 and Section 28 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992

Download the child benefit disregard application form

If a discount is granted it will last for as long as you qualify. If anything changes you must contact us within 21 days so that your charges can be recalculated.

If you disagree with the council's decision not to award you a discount you can appeal against the decision. In the first stage of the appeal, you must write to the council, giving the reasons why you think the decision is wrong.

The information you provide should include:

• your name and the address of the property
• details about the decision you are unhappy with and why you are unhappy with it.

Please send your appeal to the council tax team.

The council has two months to make a decision about your appeal. If you still disagree with our decision, or if we have not replied within two months, you can appeal to a Valuation Tribunal.

Your bill may be reduced if a permanently disabled person (whether an adult or child) lives in the home.

Your property must have certain features which are essential, or of major importance, to the wellbeing of the disabled person.

These features are:

• a room other than a bathroom, kitchen or toilet which is used mainly by the disabled person.
• an extra bathroom or kitchen for the use of the disabled person.
• extra space inside the property for the use of a wheelchair.

When considering whether a reduction should apply, we have to decide whether the person with the disability would find it impossible or extremely difficult to live there, or whether their health would suffer, or the disability become more severe, if the extra feature was not available.

To qualify for a reduction, the extra room need not be specially built, but can be an existing room used specifically for the person with the disability. A council inspector will visit your property before this can be awarded.

If your home is eligible, your bill will be reduced to that of a property in the valuation band immediately below. For example, if your home is in band D, your bill will be reduced to that for a band C dwelling. This will not, however, affect the value of your home or its banding on the valuation list. In this example, it would still be shown as band D on the valuation list. If your home is in band A (the lowest Council Tax band) a reduction of 1/9 of the band D Council Tax would apply.

Apply for a disabled person reduction