The information below shows the amount of council tax you will be asked to pay. This is based on your earnings and whether you have children, do not have children, or are disabled or a carer.

The bands are based on the London Living Wage (LLW) and will increase as the LLW increases.

A deduction equivalent to 30% of your council tax will be made to your Council Tax Support award for anyone, except your partner, who lives with you and is aged over 25 years old and earns more than £86.79 per week. This is known as a non-dependent deduction

People who don’t have children 

• If you are not working: You’ll get 100% of your council tax paid for you. So you won’t have to pay anything
• If you earn less than £88.40 a week: You’ll get 100% of your council tax paid for you. You won’t have to pay anything
• If you earn between £88.40 and £176.80 per week: You’ll get a 55% reduction in your council tax. So you’ll pay 45% of your council tax
• If you earn between £176.80 and £397.79 per week: You’ll get a 35% reduction in your council tax. So you’ll pay 65% of your council tax
• If you earn between £397.80 and £437.57 per week: You won’t get a reduction in your council tax. So You’ll pay all of your council tax
• If you earn between £437.58 and £497.25 per week: You won’t get a reduction in your council tax. So You’ll pay all of your council tax

People who have children 

• If you are not working: You’ll get 100% of your council tax paid for you. So you won’t have to pay anything
• If you earn less than £88.40 a week: You’ll get 100% of your council tax paid for you. You won’t have to pay anything
• If you earn between £88.40 and £176.80 per week: You’ll get a 65% reduction in your council tax. So you’ll pay 35% of your council tax
• If you earn between £176.80 and £397.79 per week: You’ll get a 45% reduction in your council tax. So you’ll pay 55% of your council tax
• If you earn between £397.80 and £437.57 per week: You’ll get a 30% reduction in your council tax. So you’ll pay 70% of your council tax
• If you earn between £437.58 and £497.25 per week: You’ll get a 15% reduction in your council tax. So you’ll pay 85% of your council tax

People who are disabled or are carers

• If you are not working: You’ll get 100% of your council tax paid for you. So you won’t have to pay anything
• If you earn less than £88.40 a week: You’ll get 100% of your council tax paid for you. You won’t have to pay anything
• If you earn between £88.40 and £176.80 per week: You’ll get an 85% reduction in your council tax. So you’ll pay 15% of your council tax
• If you earn between £176.80 and £397.79 per week: You’ll get a 55% reduction in your council tax. So you’ll pay 45% of your council tax
• If you earn between £397.80 and £437.57 per week: You’ll get a 45% reduction in your council tax. So you’ll pay 55% of your council tax
• If you earn between £437.58 and £497.25 per week: You’ll get a 30% reduction in your council tax. So you’ll pay 70% of your council tax

Earnings are based on the gross payment before tax, National Insurance and Pension deductions are taken. We do not count any military compensation payments as earnings.

If you pay for childcare then part of this cost can be deducted from your earnings. This can be up to £175 (for one child) or £300 (for two or more children) per week for the following categories:

• lone parents who work at least 16 hours per week.
• couples who both work at least 16 hours per week.
• couples if one of them works at least 16 hours per week and the other one is incapacitated, or in hospital, or in prison (whether serving a sentence or on remand)

To qualify the child or children will need to be with:

• a registered child minder, nursery or play scheme.
• a child minding scheme for which registration is not required (e.g. run by a school, local authority).
• childcare approved for working tax credit purposes.
• any out-of-school-hours scheme provided by a school on school premises or by local authority – in this case only the child must be aged 8 or more.

You will not qualify if the child is 15 years old or more. If the child is disabled the age would be 16 years.

Capital

If you or your partner have savings of over £16,000 you will not be eligible to claim Council Tax Support.

What do we mean by capital?

Capital means any savings, investments or property owned by you and your partner (if you have one). Capital includes:

• cash savings
• savings in banks, building societies or the Post Office
• money in current accounts
• Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs)
• premium bonds and income bonds
• National Savings Certificates
• stocks, shares, unit trust holdings, government securities and bonds
• lump sums such as redundancy payments, insurance payments and back payments of Social Security benefits
• tax refunds
• money invested in a business and business assets
• property, such as a house you own but don't live in
• land
• money held in trust
• money you have borrowed

How can you get support to move onto Council Tax Support?

Below is a list of our partner organisations who you can speak to for advice based on your circumstances.

Need help to understand your Council Tax Support letter?

Call us on 020 7974 4444 to ask questions over the phone or to make an appointment to speak to someone in person.

Want to find better-paid work or need support to help your adult child find a job, gain work experience or learn more about training opportunities?

• find out more about apprenticeships in Camden
  camden.gov.uk/apprenticeships or 020 7974 4444
• find out more about jobs, training and apprenticeships 
  camden.gov.uk/employment-support
• find out how to access adult learning
  camden.gov.uk/adultlearning

If you need advice to manage money or debt, or you’re being asked to pay a different amount and need support to make this change, three of our partner organisations can help you with these issues, or you can contact us directly on 020 7974 4444.

1. Money Helper
moneyhelper.org.uk
 

2. Mary Ward Legal Centre
020 7831 7079
marywardlegal.org.uk

3. Citizens Advice Camden
0808 278 7835
camdencabservice.org.uk

Apply for Council Tax Support online

Tell us about a change in your circumstances

Council Tax Support is usually awarded from the Monday after we receive your application.  In some circumstances support can be awarded from an earlier date.  This is called backdated Council Tax Support.

Pension-age applicants

Council Tax Support may be backdated by up to a maximum of 3 months - regardless of the reason for not applying earlier.

Working-age applicants

Working-age applicants who are in receipt in one of the following benefits can have their support backdated to the start of the benefit, or 1 April 2020 if later:

• Universal Credit (maximum amount)
• Employment and Support Allowance (Income-Related)
• Jobseekers' Allowance (Income-Based)
• Income Support

Working-age applicants who are not in receipt of one of the above benefits can have their support backdated up to a maximum month - but only if the applicant had good cause for not applying earlier. 

Apply for backdated Council Tax Support

You can apply for backdated Council Tax Support when submitting your application.  There is a question on the form about backdating.

Alternatively you can fill in and send us this CTS Backdate Statement.

If your circumstances have changed and you think your discount is wrong

Fill in a ‘change in circumstances’ form

or email benefits@camden.gov.uk.

If you’re struggling with council tax arrears, call us on 020 7974 6414.

Council Tax Support Regulations (PDF)