The immeasurable joy of COUNCIL TAX

Ok I give. Why is Labor screwing what has to be their main constituency like this?

Search me.

Their argument was that two thirds of the people who are going to be worse off through the abolition of the lower tax rate will find that their benefits increase, so they will not be worse off.

And what about the third who don't qualify for benefits?  Well, they are likely to be a) immigrants, who don't have the vote or who don't register to vote anyway, so who cares about them, and b) small businesspeople who are struggling against many other economic factors to get their fledgling businesses going and who can't claim income support because they are self employed, and who wouldn't vote Labour anyway!

 


Vicky

I'm curious: as a result of the Labour fiscal policies, any Labour supporters here tempted to vote Conservative in the next election?

Full time students, international or otherwise, do not have to pay council tax:

So sayeth UKCOSA
http://www.ukcosa.org.uk


From the UKCOSA guidance note "International students and Council Tax":
http://www.ukcosa.org.uk/images/tax.pdf

"DO I HAVE  TO PAY THE COUNCIL TAX?
If you live in an 'exempt dwelling' you will not need to pay the Council Tax. There will be no bill for the dwelling.
Exempt dwellings include:
* Accomodation provided by the university or college ....
*Other dwellings (e.g. a privately rented flat) occupied only by students (see the note below about the dependents of students) "

"I LIVE WITH NON_STUDENTS: DO I HAVE TO PAY THE TAX?
Students living with only their spouse or family
If the only non-student adult in your dwelling is your spouse (husband or wife) and/or adult dependant, the dwelling may still be exempt.

It will be exempt if the spouse or dependent is not a British citizen and has been addmitted to the UK .... with a 'no recourse to public funds' condiditon or a prohibiton on employment stamped in their passport. "

Did I read this correctly to understand that if the only other adult in a student household is here on FLR and not eligible for benefits we can get part of the discount still?  DH is working full-time on his masters degree, but we threw out his exemption certificate when we read that you are ineligible if you live with a non-student.  I'm getting hopeful from this remark that we actually were eligible because of my visa status, which would be a first time it worked to our benefit!

You should be counted as a one person houshold for the purposes of council tax, yes.

Vicky

I'm confused.  Am I the one person in the one person household since DH is a full time student (in which case I imagine we'd pay council tax with the single person discount)?  Or is it that they aren't counting me as living there because of my visa status?  I can't imagine the government would actually say we don't have to pay taxes because of my visa status.  Why is it different for us than any married couple where one is a student?

The student is not counted. You are.

Vicky

I recently found out (after 2 years in my flat) that EVERY flat on the street I am on is Band C within Glasgow City Council. Mine however is Band D, which is rather unfair because it is the same as every other cookie cutter flat here. I sent in a automatic form from the assessor website and just found out the Council will reduce us to Band C and refund all overcharges (although we are technically outside the 6 month window from moving in) since 1991 to all tenants of the flat since then... yay!