A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

You are here: Home Page > Advice and Benefits > Benefits > Council tax benefit - new claim

The information below tells you about claiming Council Tax Benefit and Second Adult Rebate (alternative Council Tax Benefit).

Council Tax Benefit can assist owner occupiers and people living in rent-free accommodation to pay their Council Tax. There are two different types of Council Tax Benefit, Main Council Tax Benefit and Second Adult Rebate (Alternative Council Tax Benefit). Where a person has entitlement to both of these, Benefit Services will do a ‘Better Buy’ calculation to determine which entitlement is the highest between the two and whichever is the highest will be awarded.

 

| Back to top |

 

You can apply for Council Tax Benefit if you have capital/savings of £16,000.00 or less, or if you have more than this and are receiving Guarantee Pension Credit. Applicants who receive Income Support, Income Based Job Seekers Allowance or the Guarantee Pension Credit are entitled to maximum Council Tax Benefit. Applicants with all other types of income will have their claim assessed based on their income, savings and household members. For couples, the total amount of savings/capital that the claimant and their partner have between them is taken into account. By partner we mean someone of the opposite sex you are married to or live with as if you were married.

 

| Back to top |

 

To make a claim for Council Tax Benefit you will need to complete a Housing and Council Tax Benefit application form (link at foot of page). There is one form to claim both Housing and/or Council Tax Benefit. You can also use our online benefits calculator to find out if you might qualify for benefit before you send for a form.

 

You can also visit or telephone Benefit Services at Ryedale House or one of the Area Offices, to request an application form.  Details on how to do this are here.  The Benefits Services at Ryedale House Malton will be closed on a Tuesday until 10.30am for staff training.  We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

 

If you need to help to complete the form and you are unable to visit any of our offices, our Visiting Officer can call and see you at your home to help you. To request a home visit, you can telephone the office at Ryedale House on 01653 600666 and ask for extension 221 or e-mail the Visiting Officer at benefits@ryedale.gov.uk.

 

Where someone is claiming Income Support or Income Based Job Seekers Allowance, they can get a form HCTB1 from the Department for Work & Pensions which they should complete and return to the Department for Work & Pensions office. They will send the form to Benefit Services at Ryedale House and also inform them of any entitlement to Income Support or Income Based Job Seekers Allowance.

 

| Back to top |

 

Every type of documentary evidence you supply must be original documents, photocopies are not acceptable. Documentary evidence must be supplied for both the person who is claiming benefit and their partner, if they have one. By partner we mean someone of the opposite sex you are married to or live with as if you were married. Please do not send valuable items through the post. If you can, bring them into our Benefits Counter at Ryedale House or take them to one of the Area Offices so that all the necessary details can be taken and your documents returned to you straight away. If you cannot provide all the evidence with the application form, still send the form back so as not to lose out on your date of claim and provide any other evidence within four weeks. We can start to look at your claim but will not be able to pay you any benefit until all the evidence has been received.

 

| Back to top |

 

 

If someone makes a claim for Council Tax Benefit and their total savings/capital are £16,000.00 or less, their claim will be assessed based on their income, savings and household members. Benefit Services will calculate the total income and any tariff income to be used in the calculation and compare this amount with the amount the government says you and your family need to live on each week (the applicable amount). For further information about applicable amounts, click on the link below. For people receiving Savings Credit, Council Tax Benefit is calculated using the income already assessed by the Pension Service plus the amount of Savings Credit awarded. In some cases, Benefit Services will need to make some adjustments to the income assessed by the Pension Service. Once benefit entitlement has been calculated, if a non-dependant deduction applies, a standard amount is deducted from the benefit entitlement.

 

There are standard amounts which can be deducted from some types of income when calculating the total income to be used for Council Tax benefit purposes and these are given below:

Although Benefit Services still need to know if someone is receiving any of the following types of income because they may mean a higher applicable amount can be used in the calculation, they are disregarded in full:

Where a person (and their partner if they have one) have total savings/capital of between £3,000.00 and £16,000.00, tariff income must be used in the calculation. This means for every £250.00 (or part of £250.00) you have over £3,000.00, a further £1.00 a week is added to the income to be used in the calculation. However, where a person or their partner is aged 60 years or over, tariff income is only taken into account if the total savings/capital are over £6,000.00 and for every £500.00 (or part of £500.00) you have over £6,000.00, a further £1.00 a week is added to the income to be used in the calculation.

 

The amount of the weekly average of qualifying childcare costs can be disregarded from the income up to a prescribed maximum.

 

A person who receives Income Support, Income Based Job Seekers Allowance or Guarantee Pension Credit is entitled to maximum Council Tax Benefit and may be entitled to the full amount of their Council Tax liability, unless there are non-dependant deductions to be made in respect of other adults living in the property.

 

Please contact a Council Tax advisor for further information.

 

| Back to top |

 

Any entitlement to Council Tax Benefit is credited direct to the Council Tax account and an adjustment notice showing the revised balance will be sent shortly afterwards.

 

| Back to top |

 

Council Tax Benefit is paid for as long as a person has entitlement to it. However, there may be changes in the amount of the entitlement, due to changes of circumstances. For further information about changes of circumstances, see the relevant page on this site. It is also necessary to review benefit claims at certain times and it is the claimant’s responsibility to return their review forms within the time limit specified so that their entitlement can continue. In some cases, the Visiting Officer will arrange to call and complete a review form at your home. Entitlement to Council Tax Benefit ends when a person moves to another address outside the Ryedale area, when a person dies or when they are no longer entitled to it for some other reason. When a person moves to another address in the Ryedale area, a new application form will need to be completed in respect of the new address so that the claim can be reassessed.

 

| Back to top |

 

If you decide that you are not happy with your benefit decision notice and you would like us to look at your claim again or if you want to appeal against it, you should make your request, in writing, to be received at this office within one calendar month of the date on the decision notice.

 

| Back to top |

 

If you need any further information or advice about claiming Council Tax Benefit, please do not hesitate to contact Benefit Services who will be happy to assist you. You can also find Benefit contact details on this page.

 

| Back to top |