What Is The Procedure For Adding Someone To My Council Tax Bill?
By
HuutiMoney
This blog answers the question “What is the procedure for adding someone to my council tax bill?” You can add only one other person’s name as a joint owner in your bill. If the person or people being added to your council tax bill have a disability, there are numerous discounts you could claim on your bill once they move in.
What Is The Procedure For Adding Someone To My Council Tax Bill?
You must contact your council to report a change of circumstances when someone moves in with you, even though their name may not be added to your council tax bill. You can write a letter to your council, mentioning the details of the new occupants (including their income and savings.
Your Housing Benefit calculation depends on information about occupants living on your property so a new occupant must be accounted for from the date they move in.
Your letter should be mailed to your council’s postal address like this one for Waltham Forest Council:
Waltham Forest Town Hall,
Forest Road,
London E 17 4JF
UK
Or Enfield Council:
Civic Centre Silver Street,
London EN1 3XA,
UK
Or Redbridge Council,
Lynton House,
255-259 High Road,
Ilford
IG1 1NY
Or Hillingdon Council:
Hillingdon Council,
Civic Centre
High Street
Uxbridge
UB 8 1UW
You can also add residents to your council tax bill online by signing in to your official tax account here
People moving into your house could be lodgers, children or other relatives. Your children will not be mentioned by name but only counted as occupants of the residence, on your council tax bill. The only names that are usually mentioned on a council tax bill are those of the owners of the property.
You may also need to add an occupant to your council tax bill who turns 18. This must be done on or just after their 18th birthday.
If you are living alone, adding someone or one person to your bill will disqualify you from getting the Single Person Discount. This change in circumstances should be reported immediately.
Can I add and remove people from my council tax bill simultaneously and if a mentally impaired resident moves out and another one moves in to take his place, will I still count as living alone?
Yes, of course, you can add and remove residents simultaneously from your council tax bill. In the case that they are both severely mentally impaired and proven so by a medical practitioner, you will get the same tax reduction as before (around 50% of the bill).
In your case as you were getting the Single Person Discount, this tax reduction will still be applicable to your bill. Mentally impaired persons are disregarded when living with one other person, who pays the council tax bill.
What if I forget to add someone to my council tax bill, for upto a year after they start living with me?
You should inform council tax of any new occupants of your residence as soon as possible. The new persons change the calculation of your council tax benefits. The additional income they contribute to your own cannot be overlooked for the entire tax year.
You will be charged for their occupancy through fines for underpayment of council tax by HMRC, who is already aware of personal addresses through access to electoral records. So you might be sent an investigation letter or notice during the year for reporting this extra resident on your property.
How can I add my partner to my council tax bill?
You can request your council to get your spouse or civil partner to your council tax bill by producing one of the following documents as proof:
- A marriage certificate
- A civil partnership certificate
- A mortgage agreement or loan repayment agreement or joint tenancy agreement showing proof of joint ownership
A marriage certificate is also necessary to declare your partner moving into your council house. So you have to go through the procedure for declaring a marriage to your council before your partner can legally be added to your council tax bill.
How To Declare A Partner Moving In?
In order to declare a partner moving into your property to your council you need to go through a process of applying for a Notice of Marriage. The procedure to obtain a notice of marriage begins with an interview, following your approach to the council for registering your partnership. You and your partner will sign a “statement of intent” at your local register office which mentions that you both have agreed to go ahead with this union.
This notice of marriage includes both you and your spouse’s full names, proof of your partner’s current nationality, proof of both you and your future spouse’s age and evidence proving both of your current marital status. This notice is displayed on the local register office for a period of at least 29 days before your wedding ceremony.
Obtaining the “notice of marriage” is a mandatory requirement for legalising a civil partnership or matrimony. Forced marriage is a criminal offense in England. This way of declaring a partner moving in with you leaves no doubt or shortage of evidence (provided to your council) regarding your collective consent to this lifelong unification of two souls .
How do I notify my local council about my marriage or civil partnership?
You have to sign a legal notice or partnership certificate from your local register office for informing your local council about your marriage. You and your partner may need to give notice of the marriage separately unless you are living in the same district council. This process has an interview. The following documents will be verified at the time of your interview:
- A proof of residency document verifying your home address (such as a utility bill) Proof of residence documents may also include bank statements from the past 3 months, an active National Landlords Association Tenancy Agreement or an (annual) mortgage statement from the last 12 months.
Other acceptable proof of residency documents can be a copy of your recent council tax bill, a valid driving licence or a landlord reference letter also known as a landlord affidavit of residence, clearly stating their name, address and dated signature. This landlord reference letter should be written by your landlord within the last 7 days confirming that you live on their property as a tenant.
- A valid passport. Passports for adults need to be renewed once every 10 years and those for children once every 5 years. In case you or your partner were born before 1st January 1983 you should both have your birth certificates as proof of residence instead of a passport.
- Documents to prove any recent name changes by you or your spouse (such as due to the result of a dissolution of a recent marriage or civil partnership). These can include a photo driving licence or a deed poll
A notice of marriage is a signed legal statement (containing your joint intention to get married or enter into a civil partnership) which remains displayed on the local register office notice board in the 28 days prior to your marriage ceremony.
Can I add someone who is in detention to my council tax bill?
No, normally people living in detention for long periods of time are not counted as residents for council tax purposes. But in the case where the period of detention is short such as the following:
- Detained under the deportation provisions of the Immigration Act 1971
- Detained in a prison hospital etc
- Detained under the mental health Act 1983
- Imprisoned, detained or in custody for more than 48 hours under the Army Act, Airforce Act 1955 or Naval discipline Act 1957
In the aforementioned cases the person can be added to the council tax bill, especially if they are also owners of the property. A disregard applies given these circumstances if they have not been detained for failing to pay council tax or failing to pay a fine.
People who are the sole residents of a property who are in long term detention, have their property exempt from council tax
Conclusion
This blog post addressed the question “What is the procedure for adding someone to my council tax bill?” To add someone to your council tax bill, you can write to your council by post, mentioning a change in circumstances. If you are applying to add your partner to your council tax bill, you will need to declare the marriage or civil partnership with your council’s register office and hold a wedding ceremony first. A council tax bill’s owner cannot be changed or any person’s name added to it as an amendment to details (the bill will always be in your name only)
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) : What Is The Procedure For Adding Someone To My Council Tax Bill?
What happens when the person who was the only adult occupying a property passes away?
When the person who was the only adult occupying a property passes away, without leaving behind a valid will what happens to the residence will be decided by the beneficiaries of the estate. The property will remain exempt from council tax as long as it remains empty in this case.
If the ownership of the property is transferred to the beneficiary of the will the responsibility to pay council tax will be passed on to him after the probate exemption is granted (following the death of the owner
The beneficiary or executor is not personally responsible for paying the council tax at the end of the probation period and the payment should be made from the deceased’s estate.
What is the council tax liability for executors?
The executors or heirs of the deceased person are responsible for dealing with the estate left behind. They can get an exemption (class F exemption) from paying council tax on the empty property. Executors also have the authority to put up the property they are handling up for sale.
The executor must keep council tax updated of the date when the probate is granted, the date when furniture is removed from the property and the date when the property is transferred.
If the beneficiary becomes the owner of the property then he’/she is liable to pay full council tax.
How do I qualify for a job related discount on my second home?
If your second residence is job related and your employment contract requires you to live on the property, you can claim a council tax reduction of 50% on it.
In order to qualify for this council tax reduction you must prove that it is necessary for you to stay in that residence in order to perform your work properly (which could be related to the environment, facilities or exclusion from family).
Or you must prove that it is common for other employers in your profession to provide workers second residences such as yours to aid productivity or performance. In the third case for your job related discount you need to prove that there are specific threats to your security and that this second residence provides you with special security arrangements
When making an application for this discount you need to provide the following:
- A confirmation document stating that you are required to live in the residence because it is mentioned in your job contract
- A tenancy agreement which shows that your employer has provided the home to you
- A confirmation document which shows that your employer helps you to pay part of your second home’s expenses
Citations
Council Tax For People In Prison
Council tax discount form for people in detention