Council Tax reductions for unoccupied properties
In some situations you can get a Council Tax reduction for an unoccupied property. But in most circumstances, you must pay Council Tax even when a property is unoccupied.
Where a property has been empty for 2 years or more, you must normally pay a premium charge.
Types of unoccupied property reductions
Where we can give a reduction, the reductions can be up to 100%. Apply for a reduction if you think you qualify and then keep paying until we confirm the reduction. Don't just stop paying.
What happens after you apply for a Council Tax reduction
We'll get back to you to tell you whether or not you can get a reduction. This can take up to 20 working days. It might take longer if we have to visit the property or need more information.
You must let us know straight away if anything you've told us changes.
Reductions will show on your bill as being for the whole year even when they are only for a fixed time period. We will send you a new bill when the reduction is coming to an end. If you think you should keep getting the reduction, you will need to apply again.
For more information, you can contact the Council Tax team.
Backdating reductions
You can ask us to backdate a reduction. We might ask for further information from you to help us decide how far we can backdate the reduction. We don't normally backdate for more than 6 years from the date the claim is received.
If someone else is helping you sort out your Council Tax
You can give us permission to talk to someone who is helping you sort out your Council Tax by signing our authority to disclose form.
Authority to disclose
Contact us
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Page last reviewed: 07 September 2021
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