Apply for a single person discount

A full Council Tax bill is based on at least two adults living in a property. If you are the only adult in your household, you may qualify for a Council Tax discount of 25%.

You must apply to us for this discount - you will not receive it automatically.

Eligibility

If you are the only person over 18 living in your property, and it is your sole or main residence, you are usually eligible for the discount. You cannot claim the discount for empty properties or second homes.

There are some situations where we will we need to assess your eligibility, and where you will not be eligible:

We count a person over the age of 18 as living at an address if it is your sole or main residence. If a person spends time at more than one address, we must decide which one is their main residence. To do this, we look into the circumstances, taking into account:

Whether they physically reside at each address
The reasons why they have two addresses
Where their wife, husband or partner lives, if they have one
Where their children live, if they have any
Their legal tie to each address
Where they keep most of their belongings
Whether they intend to return to one address eventually
Whether anything prevents them from returning whenever you want to
Which address seems to be their most settled home

We also look at how much time they spend at each address, but this is not the most important factor.

Even if a property is not your main residence, you may still be responsible for paying the bill.

If you are the only person who ever lives at more than one address and are the liable person at each address, you will still only qualify for a single person discount at your main residence. We will count no residents at the other address, so you will be charged full Council Tax at that address as it will be considered an unoccupied but furnished property.

If you are unsure about your specific circumstances, you can contact us before claiming a discount.

Apply

You will need your Council Tax account number to complete the form.

You can also use this form to tell us about any changes that mean you are no longer eligible, for example if somebody moves into your home.

Start my application

Your personal information provided on this form will be used in accordance with our privacy notice.

After you apply

We will either reduce the bill or let you know why we have not been able to do so. If we need more information, we will contact you.

If you get a discount

If you are given a discount, we will write to you in the future to complete a Single person discount review.

You must let us know within 21 days about any changes that might affect your eligibility.

If you disagree with our decision

If you think we have got your sole or main residence wrong, contact us and explain why. It will save time if you include as much detail as possible about your circumstances.

Up to Council Tax discounts, exemptions and reductions

Updated: 07/10/2024

Apply for a single person discount

Eligibility

If you spend time at more than one address

If your partner sometimes lives elsewhere

If your child aged over 18 has gone travelling

Apply

After you apply

If you get a discount

If you disagree with our decision