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Council Tax-student exemption/discount when family present.

Only for UK Student Visas, formerly known as Tier 4 (General) student visa

Moderators: Casa, push, JAJ, ca.funke, Amber, zimba, vinny, Obie, EUsmileWEallsmile, batleykhan, meself2, geriatrix, John, ChetanOjha, archigabe

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cee14
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Council Tax-student exemption/discount when family present.

Post by cee14 » Mon Apr 21, 2014 9:41 am

Hello,
I am Tier-4 student studying full time course more than 12 months. My wife and kids (under 18) are on Tier-4 dependant visa. Me works 20 hrs/week and wife works 32 hrs/week. My question- Are we eligible for council tax discount of 25% as I am full time student.
Thanks

Amber
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Re: Council Tax Discount when with Family

Post by Amber » Mon Apr 21, 2014 10:32 am

You should be eligible for a full 100% discount as:
UKCISA wrote:The dwelling should still be exempt if your spouse, civil partner or dependant is not a British citizen, and has been given permission to be in the UK (given ‘leave to enter’ or ‘leave to remain’) with a ‘no recourse to public funds’ condition or a prohibition on employment endorsed in their passport, or on their UK identity card ('Biometric Residence Permit' or 'Identity Card for Foreign Nationals'). This covers almost all spouses, civil partners and dependants from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland who come to join an international student in the UK.
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cee14
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Re: Council Tax Discount when with Family

Post by cee14 » Wed Apr 23, 2014 5:08 am

Amber,thanks, from references it looks 100%.However,
as my wife works 32 hrs/week & me 20 hrs/week- do you think,we are still eligible for 100% discount?

Amber
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Re: Council Tax Discount when with Family

Post by Amber » Wed Apr 23, 2014 5:24 am

Yes, you should be. A discount is not means tested.
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cee14
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Re: Council Tax-student exemption/discount when family prese

Post by cee14 » Wed Apr 23, 2014 8:25 pm

Please can you explain what do you mean by "means tested"
Yes , you are correct. It is 100%, initially they told 25% but when I told the criteria (which you have told me earlier),they gave 100% discount. Good knowledge sharing - Thank you

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Re: Council Tax-student exemption/discount when family prese

Post by Amber » Wed Apr 23, 2014 8:39 pm

Means tested means reduced by earnings and other income which, an exemption isn't.
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Hola2015
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Re: Council Tax-student exemption/discount when family prese

Post by Hola2015 » Thu Dec 31, 2015 3:44 pm

Many apologies if this question has been asked/answered before.

When I was a full time student in 2007/2008, I was initially exempted from paying council tax. However, when our then council was informed that I was living with my wife who was working, I was then told that the exemption was no longer valid, if I remembered very well, I think we were giving 25% discount instead.

Do you think I should not have been asked to pay council tax at all being a full time student, if yes, can I request for a refund by contacting the council?

Thanks

noajthan
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Re: Council Tax-student exemption/discount when family prese

Post by noajthan » Thu Dec 31, 2015 4:29 pm

Hola2015 wrote:Many apologies if this question has been asked/answered before.

When I was a full time student in 2007/2008, I was initially exempted from paying council tax. However, when our then council was informed that I was living with my wife who was working, I was then told that the exemption was no longer valid, if I remembered very well, I think we were giving 25% discount instead.

Do you think I should not have been asked to pay council tax at all being a full time student, if yes, can I request for a refund by contacting the council?

Thanks
This is an old thread so you could have started a new one.

Over eight years ago so you may be on a sticky wicket but here goes...
Some local authorities have refused to recognise that a dependent who has permission to work in the UK but has a ‘no recourse to public funds’ condition is exempt from Council Tax. This generally happens because while the law says that the concession is for a dependent who is prevented from taking paid employment or from claiming public funds, the local authority may interpret the word "or" to mean "and" rather than "either .. or...".

In May 2012, Mr Justice Sales in the High Court dismissed such an interpretation by the London Borough of Harrow on this basis, in a case specifically about the council tax liability of the dependent of a student. The judgment confirmed that local authorities should be applying the latter disjunctive meaning of "or", not the cumulative meaning, and that it is sufficient for a spouse to meet one of the requirements, not both.

If you wish to appeal against your local authority's interpretation of "or", you should seek advice and / or support from an adviser at your institution, your Student Union, your local Citizen Advice Bureau or a local solicitor. Tell them that the High Court judgment reference is Harrow London Borough Council v Ayiku [2012] EWHC 1200 .
See http://www.ukcisa.org.uk/International- ... -students/

Council tax liability prior to 13 May 2011
If you have been found liable for a bill for a period before 13 May 2011, then you may need to seek specialist advice to establish whether a student exemption or disregard should apply.
Ref: http://www.ukcisa.org.uk/International- ... 3-May-2011
All that is gold does not glitter; Not all those who wander are lost. E&OE.

Hola2015
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Re: Council Tax-student exemption/discount when family prese

Post by Hola2015 » Sun Jan 03, 2016 5:15 pm

Thank you Noajthan

Hola2015
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Re: Council Tax-student exemption/discount when family prese

Post by Hola2015 » Tue Feb 16, 2016 3:22 pm

Hola2015 wrote:Many apologies if this question has been asked/answered before.

When I was a full time student in 2007/2008, I was initially exempted from paying council tax. However, when our then council was informed that I was living with my wife who was working, I was then told that the exemption was no longer valid, if I remembered very well, I think we were giving 25% discount instead.

Do you think I should not have been asked to pay council tax at all being a full time student, if yes, can I request for a refund by contacting the council?

Thanks
This is an update.

I contacted my previous council on the basis of the information I obtained from this forum. To my utmost surprise the council agreed that I my council tax exemption should not have been removed and that I should not have been subsequently asked to pay council tax while I was a full time student. My account was re-opened and credited with over £1000 pounds being the amount I was wrongly asked to pay.

Today, the refund was paid into my account!

Thank you all for a very wonderful and great job

noajthan
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Posts: 14911
Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2014 11:31 am
Location: UK

Re: Council Tax-student exemption/discount when family prese

Post by noajthan » Tue Feb 16, 2016 3:28 pm

Hola2015 wrote:...

This is an update.

I contacted my previous council on the basis of the information I obtained from this forum. To my utmost surprise the council agreed that I my council tax exemption should not have been removed and that I should not have been subsequently asked to pay council tax while I was a full time student. My account was re-opened and credited with over £1000 pounds being the amount I was wrongly asked to pay.

Today, the refund was paid into my account!

Thank you all for a very wonderful and great job
Wonderful news that helps restore faith in the system.
Even without compensation for 8+ years lost interest that refund should help make a dent on student loans & etc.
All that is gold does not glitter; Not all those who wander are lost. E&OE.

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