Council tax support

What is council tax support?

Council tax support is a means-tested reduction on your council tax bill. How much support you will receive will depend on your income and circumstances.

• Working-age residents can receive a maximum of 75% support towards their council tax bill
• State pension age residents can receive a maximum of 100% support towards their council tax bill. 

Local council tax support scheme

This scheme applies to all working age residents. View the full details of scheme: 

Council tax support scheme regulations  (pdf 722kb)

National council tax support scheme

This scheme applies to all state pension credit age residents. View the full details of the scheme:

National council tax support scheme (pension age) (pdf 362kb)

Second adult rebate

You may be able to claim second adult rebate as an alternative to council tax support if you meet certain criteria. 

To qualify you must:

• be state pension age
• be the council tax bill payer
• have a second adult living in your home who is aged 18 or over. 

The second adult cannot be:

• your partner
• a tenant or boarder on a low income who is paying you a commercial rent. 

If you are not sure you qualify for second adult rebate, you should apply for council tax support. We'll check which benefit you'd be better off with and award that.

Am I eligible to claim?

You may get council tax support if you are liable to pay council tax. 

You will not be eligible if you: 

• have over £16,000  in savings unless you receive the guarantee credit element of pension credit
• live in the home of a close relative
• are a full-time student (unless you are disabled or have children)
• are an asylum seeker or sponsored to be in the UK
• are residing in the UK as a European Economic Area jobseeker. 

Can I claim if I am a European Economic Area (EEA) national and working?

It depends on how long you have been working in the UK and how much money you have been earning.

Find out more about the minimum earnings thresholds for nationals of EEA countries on the GOV.UK website or email adjudication@eastriding.gov.uk for advice. 

How much will I get?

Our online calculator provides you with an estimate of the amount of council tax support you may be entitled to.

To get an accurate estimate you will need to enter details of your earnings, income, capital and any benefits you currently receive. 

Calculate your entitlement online

If I qualify, when and how will I receive my benefit?

Council tax support is deducted directly from your council tax liability. You will be issued with a revised council tax bill if you are eligible, advising you of any amount awarded, the amount outstanding and details of how to pay. We can send you a text message when your claim is processed if you opt into this service.

 More information about how to pay your council tax is available on the  council tax payments page.

How do I apply for council tax support?

The quickest way to apply for council tax support is online.

Please note: this service will be unavailable between 7am and 12pm on 23 January 2022.  We apologise for any inconvenience.

To avoid any delays, please have the following details ready:  

• National Insurance number for you and your partner  
• all income for you and your partner 
• any state benefits (for example, Jobseeker's Allowance or Pension Credit) 
• all bank accounts you and your partner have, even if they are overdrawn 
• all other household members' full names, dates of birth and any income they receive. 

Please Note: we are aware of issues when clicking on the link above using Internet Explorer 11. Please use Google Chrome to complete the form if possible.

If you need any assistance, please call (01482) 393939.

What proof do you need to see to support my application?

You will be required to provide the following documentation to support your application:

Identity for you and your partner

• Birth certificate
• Marriage certificate
• Current passport
• Medical card
• Driving license in photo card format
• UK residence permit
• EEC identity card
• Letter from a government department. 

National Insurance number for you and your partner

• National Insurance number card
• P60 or payslips
• Letter from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). 

The benefits team will contact you if they require any further documentation.

Other evidence you may be required to submit

• Capital, savings and investments for you and your partner
• Earnings for you, your partner and any other non-dependants living with you
• Self-employed earnings for you and your partner
• Other income for you, your partner and other adults living with you
• Benefits, allowances or pensions for you, your partner and any other adults living with you
• Childcare costs
• Any other eligible expenses. 

If you do not have any payslips, or if they are handwritten, you will need to ask your employer to complete the form below:

Certificate of earned income (pdf 72kb)

If you have childcare costs but do not have any receipts, please ask your childcare provider to complete the form below:

Childcare costs (pdf 44kb)

How to prepare and supply proof documents

Proofs must be in GIF, JPG, JPEG, PDF or PNG format and be a maximum of 20mb in size.

You could:

• take a steady, clear photograph of them with your smartphone or tablet 
• scan them using your home printer if it has scanning capabilities
• scan them at your local customer service centre.

 You can either upload your proof in the online application form or email your documents to us at benefit.assessments@eastriding.gov.uk.

Can my claim be backdated?

You can request that your claim is backdated for a maximum of one month, however, there is no automatic right to a backdate. Each request is considered on its own merits and you must show good cause throughout the period of your request.

I have somebody else living with me over the age of 18, who is not my partner, will this affect how much I will receive?

The amount of council tax support you receive may be reduced if you have a non-dependant living with you.

Non-dependants are people who normally share your accommodation but are not dependant on your financial support. Non-dependants are people such as grown-up children and elderly relatives.

The following people are NOT classed as being non-dependants:

• carers employed by a charity that charges for the service
• joint tenants
• sub-tenants
• boarders
• tenants of owner properties
• landlords and their partners. 

I am self-employed, what information will you need from me?

Find out more information about being self-employed, or starting a new business.

Where can I find information about debt, budgeting or other financial help?

Use our online budgeting tool to help you create your own personal budget plan to: 

• reduce your expenses
• maximise your income
• pay off your debts
• save for a rainy day. 

Use our budgeting tool

If you would like free and confidential help with budgeting from one of our benefit and debt advisors, simply email benefit.takeup@eastriding.gov.uk and we will contact you to make an appointment to see how we can help.

Further information and advice about debt, budgeting and other financial help is available on our Welfare visiting team page.

MoneyHelper

MoneyHelper provide free, impartial, and trusted money advice. They have created a simple, flexible 10-week plan to build your money confidence. MoneyHelper's Couch to Financial Fitness covers managing your budget, staying on top of bills and payments, how to cut your costs and building up savings. There are further guides available to help with everyday money education.

MoneyHelper's Couch to Financial Fitness (external website)

In cases where there is a large degree of indebtedness and/or multiple debts more than what is owed to the council, cases are referred to specialist debt advice providers. We hope the help of specialist debt advice leads to lasting and positive outcomes.

You can self-refer to MoneyHelper’s Money Advisor Network. Their network allows you to access free, confidential and independent debt advice straight away. Find further information and a self-referral to the Money Advice Network (external website). 

Citizens Advice

Citizens Advice provide comprehensive information on help with debt. They also have specialist debt advisors who can provide free, specialist debt advice. Find out more and their local contact information below:

Hull and East Riding Citizens Advice (external website)

Step Change

Step Change also provide free, expert debt advice which will be tailored to your situation. Find more information on their debt advice here: 

Step Change - Debt advice (external website)

How do I report changes?

Report a change in your circumstances on our existing claims page.

Where can I find information about debt, budgeting or other financial help?

Use our online budgeting tool to help you create your own personal budget plan to: 

• reduce your expenses
• maximise your income
• pay off your debts
• save for a rainy day. 

Use our budgeting tool

If you would like free and confidential help with budgeting from one of our benefit and debt advisors, simply email benefit.takeup@eastriding.gov.uk and we will contact you to make an appointment to see how we can help. 

Further information and advice about debt, budgeting and other financial help is available on our Welfare visiting team page.

Can you help me with employment, education and skills?

Find out about council jobs and pensions.

Find out about employment, education and skills.

I am having financial difficulties, can you help me in any other way?

Check if you can receive a reduction If you are struggling financially, you may make an application for one of our discretionary schemes to reduce your rent or council tax.

Anyone who needs further help with housing costs, and is currently claiming housing benefit or the housing element of Universal Credit can claim a discretionary housing payment.

Anyone who needs further help with Council Tax can claim a  discretionary discount as there are no set conditions for awarding this reduction and we will individually consider any applications.

To apply for a discretionary scheme, we will need a range of information from you to make a decision including the following:

• Why you are unable to pay your rent or council tax
• Household income and expenditure
• Savings and investments
• If you have received debt or benefits advice. 

Can I request a hold on recovery action and additional fees?

Read about the new, statutory scheme called ‘Breathing Space’ which is designed to provide people with debt problems the right to legal protection from creditors for a limited period of time.