Claiming Council Tax Support
Council Tax Support (CTS) helps towards the cost of your Council Tax where you are the person named on the demand and you are on a low income.
Depending on your current circumstances, there are different ways to claim CTS.
You may not even need to fill in a form.
To find out what you should do now, choose the sentence that best describes your circumstances:-
I'm about to make a new claim for UC (or have recently claimed UC)
Information about CTR, including Gosport's scheme
I'm making a new claim for Universal Credit (UC)
When you make a claim for UC, you will be asked:-
- If your name is on the Council Tax demand, and/or
- If you've applied/want to apply for Council Tax Reduction
If you are planning to apply for Council Tax Support, the DWP will let us know that you've made a claim for UC. We can then use this DWP notification as your claim form for Council Tax Support.
This means that, once you have claimed UC, you don't need to do anything except wait to hear from us. Once a decision has been made, you will get a Decision Notice in the post. If you have not heard from us within 2 weeks of receiving your first UC payment, call us on 023 9254 5325 to find out why.
I'm already getting Universal Credit (UC)
If you are already getting UC, you need to complete a form to claim Council Tax Support. Visit the Benefits Calculator for an estimate of whether you are likely to be entitled.
After claiming
Once you have completed the claim form, you do not need to do anything except wait to hear from us.
- You will receive an email to confirm we have received your form (check your junk box if you can't find this).
- We will contact you if we have any questions or need any information from you
Once a decision has been made, you will get a Decision Notice in the post. If you don't hear from us within 6 weeks of the date you submitted your form, call the office on 023 9254 5325 to find out why.
I'm a pensioner
If you are of state pension credit age, you need to complete a form to claim Council Tax Support. Visit the Benefits Calculator for an estimate of whether you are likely to be entitled.
After claiming
Once you have completed the claim form, you do not need to do anything except wait to hear from us.
- You will receive an email to confirm we have received your form (check your junk box if you can't find this).
- We will contact you if we have any questions or need any information from you
Once a decision has been made, you will get a Decision Notice in the post. If you don't hear from us within 6 weeks of the date you submitted your form, call the office on 023 9254 5325 to find out why.
Information about CTR, including Gosport's Pensioner scheme
None of the above apply to me
If you are on a low income but not claiming Universal Credit, you need to complete a form to claim Council Tax Support. Visit the Benefits Calculator for an estimate of whether you are likely to be entitled.
After claiming
Once you have completed the claim form, you do not need to do anything except wait to hear from us.
- You will receive an email to confirm we have received your form (check your junk box if you can't find this).
- We will contact you if we have any questions or need any information from you
Once a decision has been made, you will get a Decision Notice in the post. If you don't hear from us within 6 weeks of the date you submitted your form, call the office on 023 9254 5325 to find out why.
Help completing the form
If you start your form and need to come back to it later, you can 'save' it, and then continue with a partially completed form. Just make sure you make a note of the reference number when you save it.
Forms can be filled in and submitted on a smart phone, tablet or computer using Wi-Fi or mobile data. If you do not have access to the internet, you could:
- use a computer at your local library (check their opening hours beforehand)
- use a friend or family member's device and / or internet
- ask your Support Worker to help you
The guide below can help with filling in the form. For any other problems, please contact the Benefits Team on 023 9254 5325. Calls are recorded for training and monitoring purposes.
Help with the claim form (PDF) [277KB]
Back to Benefits Main Page
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