If the VOA determines that your property contains more than 1 area of separate living accommodation, you may find you’re charged for more than one Council Tax band.
The VOA is required by law to apply a separate Council Tax band to every:
“building, or part of a building, which has been constructed or adapted for use as separate living accommodation”
The operational instructions followed when applying this can be found in Practice note 5: disaggregation of dwellings in the VOA’s Council Tax manual.
Example
“A family adapts two rooms in their house so that a relative is able to live with them. This includes installing kitchen appliances and a toilet and shower and also creating a single entrance to the new annex. As a separate area of living accommodation, this annex would normally require its own Council Tax band.”
The VOA will make a decision on every case based on the specific nature of the construction and / or adaptation of the property, such as:
▪️independent access to, or access from, a hallway, landing, or other common areas
▪️its own facilities for sleeping and preparing food
▪️washing facilities and a toilet
Only physical features are considered when deciding whether or not an additional area of living accommodation exists within a domestic property, not how it’s used. A separate Council Tax band is still required if an area of a house, flat, or other domestic property which could be occupied separately is vacant.
If you have an annex you may be entitled to relief from the local authority. Contact your local authority for more information.
Accommodation occupied by tenants wouldn’t be treated as an annex, but it would still have its own Council Tax band.
Various discounts and exemptions are administered by your local authority (council).
If you’ve removed a separate area of living accommodation by making physical changes to your house, flat or other domestic property, you should contact the VOA. The VOA will only be able to remove a Council Tax band if the area or annex has been sufficiently altered so that it could no longer be lived in separately.
The VOA is unable to give specific advice on any planned changes to a property. They can only explain how relevant Council Tax regulations are applied.
If you think your property has incorrectly been given an additional Council Tax band, you have the right to appeal that decision.