Exemptions

In some circumstances it is possible for a property to be exempt from Council Tax. Some are exempt for a certain period of time and then charged, others are exempt until the circumstances change.

Any claim for an exemption should be made at the time the circumstances exist at the property.

If you qualify for an exemption you have a legal responsibility to tell the council within 21 days of any changes in circumstances that may affect your eligibility for the exemption. Failure to do so may result in a penalty of £70 being imposed.

Class, description and how to apply

Class A - Properties which need or are undergoing major repair work to make them habitable or are undergoing structural alterations

This exemption is not available from 1 April 2013 and has been replaced by a discount.

Class B - Empty properties owned by a charity

This exemption is limited to a maximum of 6 months.

Can only be applied provided that the property was being used for the purposes of the charity up to the date the last occupier moved out.

How to apply:

Applications must be made in writing to counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk. Please make sure you provide your registered charity or society number.

Class C - Properties that are unoccupied and unfurnished

This exemption is not available from 1 April 2013 and has been replaced by a discount.

Class D - Vacant properties where the liable person is detained

A person who is in police custody before his/her first court appearance or someone who is detained for non-payment of Council Tax or a fine will not qualify for an exemption.

How to apply:

Download and fill out the Person in Detention application form. (PDF, 363KB)

Class E - Vacant properties where the liable person is living in care/residential home

The property must have previously been the main home of the person who is now living permanently in residential care, a nursing home, or hospital, and they must have been living there since they moved out of the dwelling.

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk with the following information:

  • The date the property became empty.
  • The address of the residential care home, nursing home, or hospital where you are now living.
  • If you would like us to correspond with a family member, friend or solicitor, please provide their details.
  • You must confirm whether or not you intend to return to the property.

Class F - Properties left empty by people who have passed away

This exemption is limited to up to 6 months from probate/administration being granted.

How to apply:

Please find more information about what to do when someone passes away.

Class G - Vacant properties where occupation is prohibited by law

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk. We will need to see evidence that occupation is prohibited, and we will require a forwarding address and contact details for the owner.

Class H - Vacant properties held for occupation by Ministers of Religion

The exemption applies to a property being held for a minister of any religious denomination.

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk.

Class I - Properties left vacant as the person has moved to receive care elsewhere

The person who is being cared for must require care for one of the following reasons:

  • Old age
  • Disablement
  • Illness
  • Past or present alcohol or drug dependence
  • Past or present mental disorder.

You must have left the property to receive care elsewhere, and you cannot have moved anywhere else in between leaving the property and moving to receive that care.

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk with the following information:

  • When you moved
  • The address you moved to
  • Who is caring for you
  • Why you require care
  • You must confirm whether the move is permanent.

Class J - Properties left vacant by persons have moved to provide personal care elsewhere

The person who is being cared for must require care for one of the following reasons:

  • Old age
  • Disablement
  • Illness
  • Past or present alcohol or drug dependence
  • Past or present mental disorder.

You must have left the property to care for that person (i.e. you cannot have moved anywhere else in between leaving the property and moving to care for that person).

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk with the following information:

  • When you moved
  • The address you moved to
  • Whom you are caring for
  • Why that person requires your care
  • You must confirm whether the move is permanent.

Class K - Vacant properties, where the owner is a student elsewhere, who last occupied the property as their own home

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk with the following information:

  • The date the property became unoccupied
  • The address the student moved to
  • A copy of the student's certificate of full-time education.

Class L - Properties repossessed from the former mortgagors

If a property is empty and the mortgagee takes possession under the mortgage, it is exempt from Council Tax.

If the property is still occupied when the mortgagee takes possession, the exemption does not commence until the occupants vacate the dwelling.

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk. Proof must be supplied. Please also make sure you inform us once the property is sold.

Class M - Student hall of residence

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk.

Class N - Student household

Properties that are occupied by full-time students only are exempt from payment of Council Tax.

If you are a student and you share your address with someone who is not a full-time student, then we can reduce the Council Tax bill by 25%.

If you are a student and you share your address with two or more joint tenants who are not full-time students, then there is no reduction, and the people who are not students will be named on the Council Tax bill.

How to apply:

Please fill out the online student application form.

Please note that we require a form filled out for each student in the property and a copy of each student's certificate of full-time education.

Class O - Armed forces accommodation

Living accommodation for UK armed forces which is owned by the Secretary of State for Defence is exempt whether it is occupied or not.

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk.

Class P - Properties occupied by a member of a visiting force

A dwelling is exempt if any one of the persons who would be liable to pay the Council Tax has a 'relevant association' with a visiting force from a country to which the Visiting Forces Act 1952 applies.

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk with a certificate showing your membership details of a visiting force.

Class Q - Properties which are the responsibility of a trustee in bankruptcy

Where the person who would be liable for the Council Tax in respect of an unoccupied dwelling is a trustee in bankruptcy, the dwelling is exempt from paying Council Tax.

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk with evidence of the bankruptcy order as part of the application.

Class R - Unoccupied caravan pitches or unoccupied moorings for boats

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk.

Class S - Properties where all occupiers are under of 18 years of age

A property that is only occupied by a person who is, or by persons who are, under 18 years of age is exempt from having to pay Council Tax.

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk with proof of the date of birth for the occupiers (such as a birth certificate, passport, or benefit entitlement letter).

Class T - Unoccupied annexe

This exemption may be granted where an annexe is empty and cannot be let separately without a breach of planning control under Section 171A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk with proof that the annexe cannot be let separately (such as a planning permission document).

Class U - Properties where all occupiers are severely mentally impaired

If a dwelling is only occupied by people who are classed as 'severely mentally impaired' it is exempt from Council Tax; however, this is only the case if the person whose name appears on the bill lives in the dwelling and is also classed as 'severely mentally impaired'.

If a person living at a property is classed as 'severely mentally impaired' and they live with other people, that person is 'disregarded' from Council Tax. This means we do not count them when calculating the number of people living in the house. If, by not counting that person, the number of people living in the property is just one, a 25% discount may be granted.

A person must be certified by their doctor to be severely mentally impaired, and the person must be entitled to a relevant benefit (please see the application form on the discounts page for relevant benefits).

How to apply:

Please download the SMI application form. Please note that the form will need to be signed by a doctor and you must return the form with evidence of the qualifying benefit.

Class V - Properties where occupiers have diplomatic immunity

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk with evidence.

Class W - Annexes occupied by dependent relatives

Occupied annexes are exempt if occupied as the home of a dependent relative of a person living in the main dwelling.

A relative is to be regarded as dependent if they are:

  • Aged 65 years or more
  • Under 65 but severely mentally impaired, or
  • Under 65 but substantially and permanently disabled.

The following are 'relatives' for the purpose of the exemption:

  • Spouse, parent, child, grandparent, grandchild, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, great-grandparent, great-grandchild, great-uncle, great-aunt, great-nephew or great-niece.

How to apply:

Please email counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk.

 

If you think that your property might qualify for an exemption, then you should contact the Council Tax department by emailing counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk. Any such claim should be made at the time the circumstances exist at the property.

Council Tax contact information

Revenues Service, PO Box 5327, Civic, 1 Saxon Gate East, Central Milton Keynes MK9 3EJ