Properties exempt from Council Tax

You can apply for a Council Tax exemption for properties that are:

• unoccupied and owned by a charity - this exemption applies whether or not the property contains furniture and for up to 6 months
• empty due to person being detained in prison or under the Mental Health Act (except for when in prison due to non-payment of Council Tax) - the property may be either furnished or unfurnished but cannot apply if there is someone still living in the property
• empty due to person having gone to live in a hospital or care home on a permanent basis
• unoccupied after a single resident, who owned that property, has died, as long as it remains unoccupied and until probate is granted - following a grant of probate a further 6 months exemption is possible as long as the property remains unoccupied and has not been sold or transferred to someone else
• prohibited to be occupied by law - exemption applies where the property remains unoccupied
• unoccupied being held for a minister of religion
• empty because a person is living elsewhere to receive personal care
• empty because a person is living elsewhere to provide personal care
• empty due to students living elsewhere - the property must have previously been occupied by 1 or more students, who are still liable
• repossessed by a mortgagee, such as a bank or building society
• students' halls of residence
• occupied only by full-time students
• UK Armed Forces accommodation
• Visiting Forces accommodation
• left empty by a bankrupt person - this exemption applies whether the property is furnished or not
• unoccupied caravan pitch or boat mooring
• occupied only by people under 18 years of age
• an unoccupied annexe to an occupied dwelling
• occupied only by severely mentally impaired people
• the main residence of a person with diplomatic privilege or immunity
• an annex occupied by a dependant relative - this exemption applies if the annex is the sole or main residence of a dependent relative (for example, someone over 65 years of age, or a person who is either severely mentally impaired or substantially and permanently disabled) of a person who is resident in the main property

Apply for an exemption

You can apply for an exemption online.