Council Tax For Students

If you are searching for your next student property, you may be wondering what bills you will need to pay. So, are students required to pay council tax?

Phone Scan

 

If this is your first time renting in the private rented sector, you will need to think about which bills need setting up. Take a look at our recent article regarding this - click here.

 

Council Tax:

Council tax is applied to properties and not people. However, there are some exemptions from paying it. 

Any property which is occupied exclusively by full time students will qualify for a full exemption on council tax. 

 

To count as a full time student, your course must:

Last at least one calendar or academic year, where you're required to undertake the course for at least 24 weeks out of the year

Involve at least 21 hours of study, tuition or work experience per week during term time

If you are under 20 years old and you're studying for a qualification up to A level, Scottish Higher National Certificate, NVQ/SVQ level 3 or equivalent, your course must:

Last at least 3 months

Involve at least 12 hours of study per week

The local council may ask you to provide proof that you are a full time student. The university will be able to provide you with a certificate to prove this along with the dates of your course.

Once the course end date has been reached, any student exemption will end and you will no longer be treated as a student (if you have finished one course and are waiting to start another, at this point you may be liable for Council Tax).

 

Living With Non-Students:

The property will not be exempt from council tax if you live with other people who are not full time students. However, they may be able to apply for a discount. If you share with an employed person, they may be liable for 75% of the council tax bills (there is a 25% discount due to there being 1 eligible adult in the property). As a full time student, you are disregarded when counting the number of eligible adults. 

If you are considering living in a mixed household, we advise checking with the local council first. 

 

If you receive a council tax bill but you don't think you should have, you can apply for an exemption.

For more information, please contact the Bournemouth Council website - click here.