Reducing council tax bills
Check the client’s liability for council tax. Any dwelling solely occupied by full-time students is exempt for council tax purposes.
A student is not jointly liable to pay council tax if they live in a property in which they have an equal legal interest with others. If there are non-students or part-time students who are liable, the bill may be reduced because a full-time student attracts a ‘status discount’. So, if there is only one non-student or part-time student living in the property with one or more full-time students, a 25 per cent discount should be awarded.
Educational institutions may provide local authorities with lists of full-time students attending courses and, if requested, they must issue a letter to a student establishing their status. Some institutions have been known to charge for this letter and you should argue that this is inappropriate. Students should inform council tax offices of their status to obtain a exemption or reduction.
See CPAG’s Council Tax Handbook for more information.