united-kingdom tax-law
UK Single person council tax discount when owning joint property
<p>We own a joint property in the UK, and are full taxpayers of all taxes including standard rate council tax band for the region.</p>

<p>But my partner will be going abroad for a significant amount of time (6 months+). Will I be able to claim the single person discount for council tax, if I am living alone in the property (thus using less of council services like rubbish collection, libraries, etc)?</p>

<p>It looks like that - because it's a lot of revenue, so councils try to sideline this scenario stating that - you still own property jointly, so ignoring the fact that only 1 person is living there (thus using less of council facilities).</p>

<p>The <a href="https://www.gov.uk/council-tax/who-has-to-pay" rel="nofollow noreferrer">government website says</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>A full Council Tax bill is based on at least 2 adults living in a home. Spouses and partners who live together are jointly responsible for paying the bill.</p>
<p>You’ll get 25% off your bill if you count as an adult for Council Tax and either:</p>
<ul>
<li>you live on your own</li>
<li>no-one else in your home counts as an adult</li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<p>Who owns the property is not relevant to this assessment.</p>
<p>In any case, there's probably no harm in applying for the discount and seeing what happens.</p>
