Council Tax Support

Changes to Council Tax Support

From 1 April 2019 Council Tax Support for working age households is changing.

Following consultation with residents, a new ‘Income banded’ Council Tax Support scheme was approved on 18 December 2018.

This scheme is for working age households only.  Pension age Council Tax Support claims will continue to be calculated in the same way.

The minimum contribution of 20% will be replaced by an income banded system with levels of support varying from 72% to zero dependent upon earnings as shown below.

Income banding calculation table

Income Band	Earnings threshold (monthly)	Maximum Council Tax Support discount based on claimant's Council Tax band
1	No earnings	72%
2	<£500	52%
3	£500.01-£800	44%
4	£800.01-£1100	36%
5	£1100.01-£1400	28%
6	£1400.01-£1700	20%
7	£1700.01-£2000	12%

About the new scheme

• Pensioners will continue to be treated as they were under the Council Tax Benefit scheme and will generally not pay any more than at present
• From 1 April 2019, everyone of working age will pay a minimum contribution of 28% of their Council Tax liability unless they are in a protected group. (War pensioners, war widow(er)s and people who receive Armed Forces compensation scheme payments will not have to pay the minimum contribution).  
• Non-dependant charges for working age customers will be subject to two flat rates.  A non-dependant is a person over the age of 18 (not including partner) living in the claimant's household and who they do not receive Child Benefit for.  The two flat rates will apply where:
  • A non-dependant has an income between zero and £199.99, the claimant will receive £5.00 less Council Tax Support per week.
  • A non-dependant has an income of £200.00 per week or more, the claimant will receive £11.00 per week less Council Tax Support
  • The claimant will not receive a non-dependant deduction if they or their partner are in receipt of the care component of Disability Living Allowance at the middle or highest rate, receiving the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) or receive the Carer Premium.
• Any non-dependant deductions will be deducted after the Council Tax Support % award has been calculated.
• Second Adult Rebates has been abolished for working age customers.
• A minimum income floor will apply to all working age self-employed people. This means a self-employed person declaring less income than the national living wage will have their Council Tax Support calculated on a notional income equal to that of the national living wage.
• Working age people with savings over £6,000 will not be entitled to Council Tax Support. (the limit for pensioners remains £16,000).
• Only earnings will be used in the calculation of your Council Tax Support.

Download

Pension age and protected groups

Pension age is the age where you can claim State Pension Credit. You can tell if you are of pension credit age by checking the GOV.uk website

You are considered to be in a protected group if you receive a war pensioners, war widow(er)s pension, or an Armed Forces compensation scheme payment.  

How to pay Council Tax

Many people now have to pay Council Tax who haven't previously. We can help by setting up a direct debit payment. Direct debits are the most convenient way to pay and we will always tell you how much we will take and give you notice of any changes to the payments.

See more information about how to pay your Council Tax.

Apply for Council Tax Support

Before you apply

Before starting a new claim, please:

Make sure your property is in Barnet

Check if you can get Council Tax Support using a benefits calculator.

Then, if you find that you should get it, apply for it online.

Apply for Council Tax Support

Help with your application

You can get help with new claims by telephone on 020 8359 2000 and with any other enquiries on 0208 359 2111 – if your hearing is impaired you can use Type Talk on 18001 020 8359 2000

Existing Council Tax Support claims

You can contact us using our Council Tax Support query form for claimants if you need to:

• provide evidence to support a claim 
• find out more information about a claim
• query a payment for an existing claim.

To complete the form, you'll need to provide:

• contact details
• your benefit claim number
• enquiry details including photographs or scanned documents to provide us with evidence. 

Tell us about a change of address

If you receive Council Tax support and need to report a change of address, please complete this form