Discounts
If you live on your own, you will be entitled to a single person’s discount of 25%. The amount of your Council Tax bill will therefore be reduced by one quarter. You should still claim this discount even though you may be receiving Income Support.
To apply for this discount please complete the Application for Council Tax Discount - One Adult Occupant Form if you live on your own.
If your bill shows that a discount has been granted, you must tell Revenue Services if you are no longer entitled, stating the date from which the discount should end and why.
Who is a resident?
If there are more than two adult residents, the amount payable per property will stay the same. However, if there is only one resident, a discount of 25% will be allowed. This discount will also apply if all but one of the adult residents is not counted for the purposes of the Council Tax. Please see below for further details.
A resident is a person of 18 years or over who lives in the property as their sole or main residence. People under the age of 18 are not included as residents. A temporary presence in a property does not make the person a resident there. A temporary absence does not mean that a person is no longer resident. If you go to work in another part of the country, or even abroad, you may still be considered as having your main residence here.
A resident includes any person who:
- is lodging at the property
- is working away from home but mainly lives at the property
- spends part of the week away from home.
The following people are not residents:
- A person who is staying at the property but usually lives elsewhere, such as a friend or relative on a visit
- A student who lives away from home while taking a full-time course of education
- Some adult residents are not counted for the purposes of the Council Tax. Please see below for further details.
Sole or main residence
Council Tax liability is based upon where someone maintains their sole or main residence', i.e. their home. When determining main residence, consideration is given to the person's legal interest in the property, where the majority of personal possessions are kept, but mainly whether it would be their intention to return to the property.
If a person lives elsewhere due to work commitments and would return when the employment ended, the person would be regarded as having their main residence in the Bracknell Forest area. In these circumstances, no discount would be granted against the Council Tax liability.
The Council Taxpayer of a furnished property which is nobody's sole or main residence, commonly called a second home, attracts a discount of 10%. This 10% discount will also apply to a furnished property owned by a landlord, during periods whilst there is no tenancy agreement in place. If the property is specifically job-related, such as when a publican is required to live on the premises, the discount will be 50%.
If you believe your main residence has changed please advise Revenue Services of the following information, so that your request for a discount may be considered :
- The address of your property in the Bracknell Forest area,
- The address which you now consider to be your main residence
- Your legal interest is each of the properties concerned
- Where the majority of your possessions are kept
- Whether it would be your intention to live at the property in the Bracknell Forest area, if your current employment ceased.
Residents who are not counted for Council Tax
Even if you do not live alone, you may still qualify for this discount, as some people are not included when counting the number of adults resident in a property. Anyone who is under 18 years old is not included as a resident.
Adults who are not counted as residents for Council Tax purposes are:
- Certain people in prison or detention
- The severely mentally impaired
- School pupils, school leavers and people for whom child benefit is still payable
- Certain 18 and 19 year olds
- Certain full-time students
- Non-British spouses of full-time students
- Student nurses
- Registered foreign language assistants
- Apprentices
- Youth training trainees
- Patients resident in hospital, hostels or nursing or care homes
- Care workers
- Carers
- People with a relevant association with an international Headquarters and Defence Organisation
- Members of visiting forces
- Diplomats
- Members of religious communities
If there are two adults over 18 years old living in a property, and one of them is included in the above list, a 25% discount still applies. However, a discount will not be granted if there are three adults, and only one of them is included in the list.
Please complete the Application for Council Tax Discount - One Resident Counted Form if you would like to apply for a council tax discount because only one resident in the property is counted for council tax purposes.
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