About your Council Tax

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Answers to all your questions on what the charge is, how it is set and who has to pay it.

• What is council tax?
• How do you calculate my bill?
• Why are there other charges on my bill?
• Who has to pay the bill?

What is council tax?
The council tax is a charge set by local councils to meet some of the cost of providing services to their residents such as education, social work, road maintenance, refuse collection and leisure services. It is property based, which means it is payable on people’s homes – usually on a house or flat, but also on other types of property where people might live, such as a houseboat or caravan.

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How do you calculate my bill?
Your council tax bill is based on how much your home is worth and how many adults live there. All homes in Renfrewshire have been put in one of eight bands by the Assessor based on their market value on 1 April 1991, and each band pays a different amount of tax.

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Why are there other charges on my bill?
Your bill also includes separate charges set by Scottish Water for water and sewerage services. Renfrewshire Council is required by law to include these charges in its council tax bill, but is not responsible for setting these charges.

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Who has to pay the bill?
Usually the occupier or occupiers of a property are responsible for paying the council tax bill.
If a property has no one living in it, the owners or tenants are responsible. Co-owners, joint tenants and couples (even if not married) are jointly and severally liable. This means that either or both of them can be held responsible for some or all of the bill.

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