Council tax exemptions

Sometimes you may not have to pay council tax. Most exemptions only apply when no-one lives in a property, but sometimes occupied properties are exempt.

The exemptions are set out below.

Exemptions with a time limit

• Class A. Empty and unfurnished properties in need of structural repair or alteration to make them habitable are exempt for up to 12 months. When structural repairs or alterations are carried out quickly, the property could still be exempt for up to six months from the date of completion if it stays empty and unfurnished.
• Class B. Empty property owned by a charity and last used for charitable purposes is exempt for up to six months.
• Class C. Empty unfurnished properties and empty caravans are exempt for up to six months. Newly built properties are exempt for up to six months after they are completed as long as no-one lives there and they remain unfurnished.
• Class F. Properties left empty because the person liable to Council Tax has died are exempt for up to six months after the grant of probate or letters of administration.

Empty properties that are exempt as long as they are unoccupied

• Class D. Properties left empty by people who are in prison.
• Class E. Properties left empty by people who have gone to live in a hospital or home to receive care.
• Class G. Properties where occupation is forbidden by law by virtue of powers granted under Act of Parliament or, from April 1 2007, because of a planning restriction. .
• Class H. Empty properties such as vicarages, kept for a minister of religion.
• Class I. Properties left empty because the liable person has gone to live elsewhere to receive personal care.
• Class J. Property left empty because the liable person has gone to live elsewhere to provide personal care to another person.
• Class K. Property left empty because the liable person is a student who is living elsewhere.
• Class L. Properties that have been repossessed by a mortgage lender.
• Class Q. Properties where the person who has possession is a trustee in bankruptcy.
• Class R. A caravan pitch without a caravan.
• Class T. A home which is part of another home, for example an annexe, and where separate occupation from the main home is not allowed by planning controls.

Properties that are exempt while occupied

• Class M. Student halls of residence.
• Class N. Properties occupied only by students.
• Class O. Armed forces accommodation.
• Class P. Properties occupied by visiting forces or members of international defence organisations, or their dependants
• Class S. Properties where all the occupiers are aged under 18.
• Class U. Properties occupied only by people who are severely mentally impaired who would otherwise be liable to pay Council Tax.
• Class V. Properties which are occupied by diplomats.
• Class W. Properties with a separate flat or annexe where one part of the property is occupied by an elderly or disabled relative of the owner, who lives in the other part.