enquiries@glsh.co.uk
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So, you’ve moved into your student home and are getting settled. Some things are fun, like decorating your room and making the communal space cosy, and some things are not so fun, like sorting out the bills. But the good news is there is one bill that you are most likely exempt from!
Council tax is paid on all domestic properties in England, Scotland and Wales. It is payable if you are aged 18 or over and own or rent a home. This tax is an annual fee that covers local services such as libraries, rubbish collection, transport services and police. It’s normally paid in 10 monthly instalments but can vary across different local authorities.
The good news is that if the whole house is made up of full-time students, you should be exempt from paying council tax. Full-time is defined as your course lasting 1 calendar or academic year for at least 24 weeks and normally involves at least 21 hours of study per week during term time.
It is however your responsibility to apply for the exemption, and you can do this by proving to the council that you are a full-time student by following the below steps.
Step one: get a council tax exemption form from your university. This proves that you are in full-time education. To get this, you can ask either student services or your tutor. Gloucester Student Houses can’t get this for you, as we can’t prove your education status.
Step two: send the form to the council. You can do this by emailing revenues@gloucester.gov.uk. If anyone in your household does not do this, then they alone will be liable to pay the full amount of the council tax for the property. So, we recommend that you get everyone’s council tax exemption form for the house and email it together to revenues@gloucester.gov.uk. Make sure you state clearly the full address of the house you’re living in.
You can read more on exemptions here.
The bad news is that if even one person living in the property is over 18 and not a student, then council tax will still apply. However, you can apply for a discount of 25% by following this link.
You can find out more information here. If you have any queries, ping us an email on enquiries@glsh.co.uk.
