Council Tax Support

Council Tax Support will help to pay your Council Tax if you are on a low income. It is different to the Council Tax discounts and exemptions.

In order to qualify for Council Tax Support you must:

• be on a low income; and
• be the person responsible for paying the Council Tax

If you are working age (currently under 66 years of age) you will not qualify for Council Tax Support if you have savings or investments of more than £10,000.

If you are over the qualifying age for State Pension Credit  you will not normally qualify for Council Tax Support if you have savings or investments of more than £16,000.  You may have more savings than this and still qualify for Council Tax Support if you or your partner receive Pension Guarantee Credit.

You can use our benefits calculator to see what help you can get.

Apply

To apply for Council Tax Support you will need to complete an application form. Please click the button below to start an application. If you have any issues, please contact our Customer Services team.

Apply now

You will need to provide evidence that can be uploaded when you complete the online form. If you do not have all the evidence to hand you can upload it later, as long as we receive it within one month of the claim being made.

Evidence

We need to see the documents that prove you need benefit before we can pay it to you. These can be originals or copies.

The easiest way to send us your proofs is by using our online form.

You can email your proofs to benefits@tunbridgewells.gov.uk, or send them via post to:

Please note this is not a Freepost address.

Evidence you need to provide:

• National Insurance numbers for you and your partner. Your partner needs to be someone you are married to or living with as though you are married.
• Proof of identity for you and your partner. For example a passport or driving licence.
• Details of any capital, savings and investments, including all bank and building society current and savings accounts.
• Details of any earnings for you and your partner, including anyone else over 18 living with you.
• Details of any other income.
• Details of any benefits, allowances or pensions.
• Proof of residency.

If you do not have all the evidence you can send the form in first and then send the rest of the evidence later. We need to have all the evidence within one month, but your claim will start from the first day we receive your application form.

If you do not get the evidence to us within one month we may not be able to pay you any Council Tax Support.

If you are having problems getting your evidence together please contact us and we can help.

Depending on your circumstances, we may also ask you for information that is not listed above.

Appeal

If you are not satisfied with our decision or how we have explained our decision, you can ask that we look at your claim again.

Alternatively you can appeal our decision, you will need to send your request in writing to:

Please note this is not a Freepost address.

You need to make it clear which decision you are asking us to reconsider and your reasons why. You need to do this within one month of the decision you are appealing against. If you believe that any of the information or figures we have used are incorrect, you will need to supply proof of this.

We will write to confirm or amend our original decision.

If you still do not agree with our decision you can send an appeal to the Valuation Tribunal Service, who will consider your case independently.

Email: appeals@vts.gsi.gov.uk
Telephone: 0300 123 1033
Fax: 01302 321447

Overpayments

An overpayment happens when we pay Council Tax Support which you were not entitled to. If we have paid too much Council Tax Support you will receive a new Council Tax bill which will tell you how much you need to pay.

You need to tell us of any changes in your circumstances, to prevent any overpayments. This is your responsibility – do not rely on anyone else such as the Jobcentre Plus, the Department for Work and Pensions or the Pension Service.

We will send you a letter giving you the full details of the overpayment. The letter will tell you why the overpayment happened, the amount you were overpaid and the period of the overpayment. It will also tell you whether we intend to recover the overpayment and what to do if you disagree with the overpayment.

How is the overpayment paid back?

You will be sent a revised bill. You will be able to pay online, by setting up a Direct Debit, by calling our automated payments line on 0845 835 0148 or by visiting The Amelia, Mount Pleasant Road, Tunbridge Wells.