Claim Housing Benefit or Council Tax Support

Information about Second Adult Rebate

The Second Adult Rebate helps pay your Council Tax bill when you've another adult living with you who prevents you from getting a Single Person Discount.

Eligibility for Second Adult Rebate

You can only apply for a Second Adult Rebate if:

  • You've reached the state pension age. Check your state pension age
  • You can't claim a single person discount because a second adult lives with you. The second adult must:
    • Be at least 18 years old
    • Not be your partner
    • Not have joint responsibility for paying Council Tax
    • Not pay your rent
    • Be on a low income or on benefits
    • Not be exempt from paying Council Tax. See who is exempt from paying Council Tax

The discount you could get

You could receive a discount of between 7 per cent and 25 per cent off your Council Tax bill.

The exact amount depends on the income or amount of benefits of the second adult living with you. If there is more than one adult sharing your home, the Second Adult Rebate is based on the combined income of all the second adults.

Backdating your claim

Your benefit will usually start from the Monday after you apply.

You can ask us to backdate your Second Adult Rebate for up to 3 months. You don't need to give any reasons why you want the rebate backdated.

Ask us to backdate your benefit