Council Tax Support: For those on a low income or benefits
Council Tax Support (also known as Council Tax Reduction) is a scheme to give people a discount on their Council Tax bill.
The discount you receive depends on your income and circumstances.
It is a discount on your Council Tax bill rather than being paid as a benefit.
You could be eligible for Council Tax Support if you are:
- unemployed
- employed on a low income
- in receipt of state benefits
- a working age person with savings under £6,000
- a pensioner with savings under £16,000
Find out of you're eligible for Council Tax Support
Check if you can get Council Tax Support using our benefits calculator
Apply for Council Tax Support
You’ll get a discount on your bill if you’re eligible.
How much of a discount can you get?
If your property is at Band D or above on your Council Tax bill, the maximum discount you could get is based on a Band C amount.
The discount depends on your monthly earnings.
| Monthly earnings |
Maximum discount on Council Tax |
|---|---|
| No earnings | 70% |
| Up to £500 | 50% |
| £500.01 - £800 | 40% |
| £800.01 - £1400 | 25% |
| £1400.01 - £2000 | 12% |
| £2000.01 and over | Nil |
A self-employed person with a lower income than the Living Wage will have their Council Tax Support calculated based on the London Living Wage.
Only your earnings will be used in the calculation of your Council Tax Support.
A non-dependant is a person over the age of 18 who is not your partner.
Your Council Tax Support will be reduced where a non-dependant has:
- an income between £0 and £199.99 (the claimant will receive £5 less Council Tax Support per week)
- an income of £200 per week or more (the claimant will receive £11 per week less Council Tax Support).
There will be no non-dependant reduction if you or your partner receives:
- Disability Living Allowance at the middle or highest rate
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
- Carer Premium
Once your Council Tax Support amount has been calculated, the total will then be amended to include any non-dependant reductions.
If you are a pensioner, you can receive a reduction on your Council Tax bill of up to 100%.
This benefit is means tested:
- a standard weekly income amount is allowed, depending on the number of people in the household and relevant personal circumstances, such as disability
- any income a household receives above that amount reduces the entitlement to Council Tax Support on a sliding scale.
You could be in a protected group that the Working Age Scheme does not apply to. Council Tax Support for these groups are calculated in the same way as pensioners.
Protected groups include:
- War Pensioners
- War Widowers
- people who receive Armed Forces compensation scheme payments
Help with your application
You can get help with:
- new Council Tax Support claims on 020 8359 2000
- other Council Tax Support enquiries on 0208 359 2111
- Type Talk (for the hearing impaired): 18001 020 8359 2000
Existing Council Tax Support claims
You can contact us if you need to:
- provide evidence to support a claim
- find out more information about a claim
- query a payment for an existing claim
To complete the form, you'll need to provide:
- contact details
- your benefit claim number
- enquiry details including photographs or scanned documents to provide us with evidence
Use our Benefits General Form to contact us about Council Tax Support
Full details about Barnet Council Tax Reduction Scheme 2025-2026 (PDF, 399KB)