Full time students do not have to pay council tax.

You are a full-time student if SAMIS says you are.

However, there are some steps you may need to take and you should NEVER ignore a Council Tax Bill.

Part time students do have to pay council tax.

• If you are on placement, you are still registered as a full-time student at the university so are not liable for council tax even if you are being paid to work. You will need to provide the local authority for where you are living with a student status letter

• If you are on placement living with professionals in a shared house, then the other tenants (if a joint tenancy) will be liable for the whole council tax which will increase their portion. This may lead to conversations within the house about this.

If you are unsure then get in touch with SU advice and support

If you live on campus in a halls of residence, and you have given the University permission to share this information with the Local Council, you do not have to do anything and you should not get a council tax bill.

If for any reason you do, don’t ignore it, email the Advice and Support team

Good to know–

• If everyone in your property is a full-time student no one will need to pay any council tax

• If one of the people you live with is not a full-time student the property becomes liable for 75% of the full amount of Council Tax. This means you, as a student, cannot be asked to pay council tax. The non student is expected to pay, however, you might choose to share the cost between you

• If more than one person is not a full-time student the property becomes liable for the full 100% Council Tax. This means you, as a student, cannot be asked to pay council tax. The non students are expected to pay, however, you might choose to share the cost between you

• Those living at the property who are not full-time students may be able to claim Council Tax Support, depending on their circumstances

What do I need to do?–

Notification to the council about students living in a property is now done by registry when students use Registration Online.

Students must update their new termtime address and tick the box which gives permission for the university to pass across their details.   

If you are unsure about your status then you may be able to login to SAMIS and check.

STEP ONE – check student status on SAMIS and check that your term time address is correct 

STEP TWO – check that you have given permission on registration and at re registration  

• Option one (included and shared) – you don’t have to do anything more 
• Option two – unsure or not shared – you need to follow this link getting proof you are a student.to download a student status letter to send to the Local Council. You can do this as a PDF via email.  

• If you live with a non-student then they will be liable to pay council tax. If they are the only person in the property with the liability then they will have a 25% discount. All full-time students are exempt (Do not have to pay) no matter who they live with. You may choose to pay towards the Council Tax bill if you wish to do so.   

• If you have a single tenancy for a room (AST or licence agreement just for the room) in a shared house or HMO (House of multiple occupancy) the landlord always has to pay the council tax, whether the landlord lives with you or not.