Who has to pay Council Tax
How we decide who is liable to pay
You’ll usually have to pay Council Tax if you’re 18 or over and live in the property as your main home.
If more than one person lives at a property, we use a system called the 'hierarchy of liability' to decide who has to pay:
- A resident who owns the freehold.
- A resident who owns the leasehold.
- A resident statutory tenant (such as a housing association tenant).
- A resident who is not a tenant but has permission to stay there (licensee).
- Any resident, for example, a squatter.
- An owner of the property who does not live there (for example, a second home or empty property)
The person at or nearest the top of the list is responsible.
Joint liability
The following people are jointly responsible for paying the Council Tax bill when they live together:
- married couples
- unmarried couples
- civil partners
- joint owners
- joint tenants
Who is classed as the 'owner' under Council Tax law
In Council Tax legislation, the 'owner' is the person who holds the main property interest.
This is important when:
- the property is empty
- liability falls on the owner instead of the resident
The owner is considered to have a property interest if they hold either:
- the freehold
- a tenancy (lease) that was originally granted for 6 months or more
Short fixed-term tenancies of less than 6 months do not normally count as ownership for Council Tax purposes.
How it works with multiple interests
Where a property has several layers of ownership—such as a freeholder, a long‑term leaseholder, and someone with a sub‑tenancy—the owner is the person who holds the lowest (most subordinate) qualifying interest.
Example: Freeholder - 10‑year leaseholder - 12‑month sub‑tenant
The 12‑month tenant is classed as the owner for Council Tax because their tenancy is over 6 months and sits at the bottom of the ownership ladder.
If you’ve moved but are still liable for your previous property under the hierarchy of liability, then you will be responsible for paying Council Tax on both properties even if one is now empty.
Tenants
As a tenant you're responsible for Council Tax whilst you live in a property.
Your responsibility begins either:
- on the date stated in your tenancy agreement
- the date agreed with your landlord that you could move in
Who is liable for Council Tax once a tenant moves out depends on the tenancy agreement:
A common form of tenancy is an assured shorthold tenancy for a fixed term (such as 6 months).
If you have a fixed term tenancy of 6 months or more, you are classed as having a material interest and will be responsible for paying Council Tax until your tenancy ends or until the end of your notice period, even if you move out before this date.
If a tenant remains in the property after the expiry of the 6 months (in the absence of any provision in the original contract or a new contract being entered into), then the tenancy automatically reverts to a statutory periodic tenancy.
If your assured shorthold tenancy ends and your agreement changes to a statutory periodic tenancy, this starts a new contract.
If you pay rent monthly under a statutory periodic tenancy, you are classed as not having a material interest in the property and will only be liable for Council Tax whilst living at the property.
Once you move out, the landlord is responsible for Council Tax until they can find another tenant.
A landlord can make it clear in the original tenancy agreement that the tenancy will become a contractual periodic tenancy when the fixed term tenancy ends.
If this is part of your agreement, you are classed as having a material interest in the property and will have to pay the Council Tax until the end of the notice period, even if you move out before then.
Properties where the owner is always liable
Under the Council Tax (Liability for Owners) Regulations 1992, certain types of properties require the owner, rather than the occupants, to be liable for Council Tax.
Properties where care or supported living is provided fall under this category. These include:
- Care homes registered under the Care Standards Act 2000 (England) or the Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act 2016
- Buildings providing accommodation under:
- Section 21 of the National Assistance Act 1948
- Sections 18 or 19 of the Care Act 2014 (England)
- Hostels as defined in Schedule 1 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992
The owner is liable for dwellings occupied by a religious community whose main activities include:
- prayer
- contemplation
- education
- the relief of suffering
- combination of these
A property is classed as an HMO for Council Tax purposes when it:
- was constructed or adapted for multiple occupants who do not form a single household
- is occupied by people who each either:
- rent or licence only part of the dwelling
- hold a licence to occupy but are not liable to pay rent for the entire property
- meets the statutory definition of an HMO in the Council Tax regulations
A property is classed as an HMO for Council Tax purposes when it:was constructed or adapted for multiple occupants who do not form a single householdis occupied by people who each either:rent or licence only part of the dwellinghold a licence to occupy but are not liable to pay rent for the entire propertymeets the statutory definition of an HMO in the Council Tax regulations
Key Features of Council Tax HMOs
Tenants usually have individual tenancy agreements or licences.Facilities such as kitchens or bathrooms are shared.Difference from HMO LicensingThe Council Tax definition focuses on how the property is occupied, not the number of residents.This can differ from licensing or planning HMOs, which typically relate to:number of occupantsnumber of storeysbuilding safety requirements
Tenants usually have individual tenancy agreements or licences.
Facilities such as kitchens or bathrooms are shared.
Difference from HMO Licensing
The Council Tax definition focuses on how the property is occupied, not the number of residents.This can differ from licensing or planning HMOs, which typically relate to:number of occupantsnumber of storeysbuilding safety requirements
The Council Tax definition focuses on how the property is occupied, not the number of residents.
This can differ from licensing or planning HMOs, which typically relate to:
- number of occupants
- number of storeys
- building safety requirements
The owner is liable where:
- at least one resident is employed in domestic service and lives there for work
- other occupants are either also employed in domestic service or are family members of the employed resident
- the employer occupies the property from time to time
A dwelling occupied by a minister of any religious denomination as their main residence used to carry out their official duties—results in the owner being liable for Council Tax.
Owners are liable for properties provided to asylum seekers under Section 95 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999.
If you don't think you should be liable
If you do not think you should be liable for Council Tax under law, you can contact us to appeal our decision.
You will need to let us know who you think should be liable (or should've been liable for a certain period) instead and provide evidence of why.
Who is not counted (disregarded)
Some people are not counted (this is called 'disregarded') when working out how many people live in a property.