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Empty Properties

From 1 April 2024, Council Tax will be payable at the full rate unless you have a Mandatory Exemption. 

Owners and landlords must pay a charge for each day the property is unoccupied.

A tenant will only be liable for an unoccupied period if it is in the period of their tenancy and they have not moved in or have moved out before the tenancy has ended.

Long term empty property

From 1 April 2024 unoccupied property premiums for properties that have been empty for more than one year will change.

If a property is unoccupied for more than one year it will have an extra Empty Premium charge.

From 1st April 2025 there are some exceptions to the long-term empty premium

Some of these are limited to a maximum period of 12 months.

The premium will be charged on top of the standard 100% unoccupied property charge, after 12 months has passed. 

The longer your property is empty, the higher the charge will be.

The premium increases the longer the property remains empty

Properties empty for 1 year and over

100% premium 

Properties empty for 5 years and over 

200% premium 

Properties empty for 10 years and over

300% premium  

If your bill has an Empty Premium charge and it is now occupied, complete a move in form.

We will begin accepting online applications for exceptions from 1 April 2025

Exceptions

You will not be charged the extra premium if your property falls under any of these classes: 

  • Class E: Used as a main home by someone in the armed forces. 
  • Class F: Annexes attached to the main property. 
  • Class G: Being actively marketed for sale (up to 12 months). 
  • Class H: Being actively marketed for rent (up to 12 months). 
  • Class I: Property where probate/letters of administration granted less than 12 months ago.
  • Class M: Properties in need of or undergoing major repairs or structural alterations 

Second Homes Premium

A second home is a dwelling which is no-one’s sole or main home but contains furniture. 

  • From April 1 2025, a 100% premium will be added to the council tax bill, making the total charge 200%.
  • The Council Tax bill will show the premium in the calculation. 

Exceptions to the Second Home Premium 

You will not be charged the extra premium if your property falls under any of these classes: 

  • Class E: Used as a main home by someone in the armed forces. 
  • Class F: Annexes attached to the main property. 
  • Class G: Being actively marketed for sale (up to 12 months). 
  • Class H: Being actively marketed for rent (up to 12 months). 
  • Class I: Property where probate/letters of administration granted less than 12 months ago.
  • Class J: Job-related dwellings (e.g., school headteacher accommodations). 
  • Class K: Caravan or boat moorings used as second homes. 
  • Class L: Seasonal homes where year-round living is prohibited. 

Where the exception is limited to a maximum period of 12 months, the premium will be charged after 12 months has passed.  

If an exemption has been applied, your bill will show No Premium and the reason for it 

Properties that were second homes before 1 April 2025 

You will be liable to pay the premium from 1 April 2025 if: 

  • The property was your second home 
  • The property has already been marketed for sale or rent for 12 months or more 
  • Probate was granted before April 1 2024 and the property has not been sold or transferred to a beneficiary (12 months or more after probate has been granted)   

Properties that become second homes on or after 1 April 2025 

The premium will apply from the first day unless you are entitled to an exemption.

Your bill will show the premium or any exception reason, if we have applied an exception.  

Rental property

Owners and landlords must pay a charge for each day the property is unoccupied and not let. 

A tenant will only be liable for an unoccupied period if it is in the period of their tenancy, and they have not moved in or have moved out before the tenancy has ended. 

Landlords

Unfurnished periods between rentals less than 12 months  

So long as the property is vacant less than 12 months, you will not be subject to the extra premium. 

Please ensure your or your tenants complete our Move In or Moving out form to give us the correct details.

Furnished periods between rentals less than 12 months  

If your property is unoccupied for short periods between rentals, the premium will not be applied if you or your tenants tell us that the property is a furnished let using our Moving out form when the tenancy has ended.

You must also ensure that you or your new tenants complete the Move In Form.

If the premium is not applied, and the exception reason is shown, you do not have to apply again, although we may send you a review notice and then you will have to make a submission.   

You will only need to apply for an exception to the premium if the bill shows the premium is being charged. 

If tenants have moved in and your bills shows we are charging you the unoccupied rate, you or the tenants should register the change using the Moving in or out form.

Job related second homes

If you have a job related second home provided by your employer for reasons of employment you might be eligible for a discount.

Find out more about Job related second homes.

Exemptions

Sometimes you might not have to pay Council Tax on a property. Some exemptions are:

  • Property owned by charity that is empty for up to 6 months.
  • Property left empty by someone who has gone in prison.
  • Property left empty by someone receiving personal care in a hospital or a home.
  • Property left empty by someone who has moved to provide care for another person.
  • Property waiting for probate or letters of administration to be granted.
  • Property that has been repossessed.
  • Property left empty by a bankrupt person.
  • Property left empty because living there is forbidden by law.
  • Property waiting to be occupied by a minister of religion.
  • Empty property annexed to another property that cannot be let separately.
  • Property used by the armed forces.

Uninhabitable property

If your property is on the Council Tax list, you have to pay Council Tax.

If your property is in a poor state of repair or undergoing substantial refurbishment work to bring it into a habitable state you might be able to have your property removed from the Council Tax list.

To do this you need to contact the Valuation Office Agency (VOA)

You must pay your full Council Tax bill until the VOA confirm that your property has been removed from the Council Tax list.

If the property is having major works or structural charges and is subject to a premium, it may be entitled to an exception.

Major works do not include:

  • installing a new bathroom suite
  • a new fitted kitchen
  • general repairs, such as replacing windows or a roof or building an additional extension
  • redecoration