Exemptions
These are the classes of dwellings that are exempt from Council Tax.
B. A dwelling that has been unoccupied for up to 6 months and is owned by a charity.
D. An unoccupied dwelling left empty by a person who has gone to prison.
E. An unoccupied dwelling left empty by a person who is now resident in a hospital or nursing home.
F. An unoccupied dwelling forming part of the estate of a deceased person and the personal representative is waiting for grant of probate or letters of administration or less than 6 months have elapsed since such a grant was made.
G. A dwelling where the occupation is prohibited by law.
H. An unoccupied dwelling held for a minister of religion as a residence from which to perform his duties.
I. An unoccupied dwelling where a person has moved to receive personal care.
J. An unoccupied dwelling where a person has moved to provide personal care to another person.
K. A dwelling which has been left unoccupied by students.
L. An unoccupied dwelling which has been repossessed by a mortgagee.
M. A hall of residence provided predominantly for students.
N. A dwelling either wholly occupied by students, school or college leavers or by certain spouses or dependants of students as term time accommodation.
O. UK armed forces barracks, married quarters and accommodation for visiting forces.
P. Visiting forces accommodation.
Q. An unoccupied dwelling which is the responsibility of a bankrupt's trustee.
R. An unoccupied caravan pitch or boat mooring.
S. A dwelling occupied only by a person or persons aged under 18.
T. An unoccupied dwelling that forms part of, or is situated within the curtilage of another dwelling and is difficult to let separately without a breach of planning control within the meaning of the Town and County Planning Act 1990(d).
U. A dwelling only occupied by a severely mentally impaired person or persons.
V. A dwelling where at least one liable person is entitled to diplomatic privileges or immunities.
W. "Granny Annexes".
The Local Government Finance Act 2012 has give councils new discretionary powers to raise additional income by allowing them to increase the level of council tax charged in relation to certain types of empty dwellings. As a result of this the following exemptions have been replaced with discounts effective from 1 April 2013:
A. Uninhabitable or properties undergoing major repair. From 1 April 2013 this has been superceded by a local discount which, subject to the conditions of this exemption, reduces the charge by 50% for up to twelve months.
C. Empty and unfurnished properties. There is now a 100% discount for up to two months after which a full charge will be made.
If you think that your property falls into one of the above categories and should be exempt, please contact the Council Tax Team for an application form. Email: counciltax@tamworth.gov.uk or fill in our online Council Tax Enquiry Form.
This information is a brief guide to Council Tax Exemptions. It does not contain the complete legal requirements for each type of exemption.