Council Tax

rdf:langString Council Tax

rdf:langString Council Tax is a local taxation system used in England, Scotland and Wales. It is a tax on domestic property, which was introduced in 1993 by the Local Government Finance Act 1992, replacing the short-lived Community Charge, which in turn replaced the domestic rates. Each property is assigned one of eight bands in England and Scotland (A to H), or nine bands in Wales (A to I), based on property value, and the tax is set as a fixed amount for each band. The more valuable the property, the higher the tax, except for properties valued above £320,000 (in 1991 prices). Some property is exempt from the tax, and some people are exempt from the tax, while some get a discount. In 2011, the average annual levy on a property in England was £1,196 (equivalent to £1,551 in 2021). In 2014–15, the tax raised enough money to cover 24.3% of council expenditure. Council Tax is difficult to avoid or evade and therefore has one of the highest collection rates of any tax, with in-year collection rates of 97.0% in 2014–15.