Council Tax

Page last updated:
14 Sep 2023

Council tax is a tax on households and contributes to services run by the local council, such as waste collection, police and fire services. If you are a full-time student you can be exempted from your household’s council tax assessment.

If you’re a full-time student living in Leeds, you can register your exemption from Council Tax on the Leeds City Council website. We’ll provide verification for all students directly to Leeds City Council in November and March each year.

If you need an exemption certificate, you can download one from Online Welcome. Once logged into your account, select ‘Council Tax discount / exemption letter’ and download a pdf version of the Council Tax exemption certificate.

If you live in a household where everyone is a full-time student, your household will be exempt, but will each need to provide evidence.

If you live in a household where not everyone is a full-time student, they may still have to pay Council Tax but may be eligible for a discount.

Please note: Degree Apprentices are not eligible for Council Tax exemption.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

A.

A: To be considered as a full-time student, you must be currently enrolled on a course which:

  • Involves at least 21 hours’ study per week
  • Lasts at least 24 weeks of an academic year
  • Has weekly placement hours that do not exceed hours of study
A.

If you have received a letter from your council, please contact them via phone or through their website. It is important that you do not ignore a Council Tax demand as you may incur legal costs even if you are exempt. If you require an exemption certificate, you can follow the steps outlined above.

If you are not exempt from having to pay Council Tax and you are having problems paying an existing Council Tax debt, you can contact our Student Money team.

If you’re concerned about a demand you’ve received you can also contact the Students’ Union Advice Service.

A.

We cannot provide Council Tax exemption certificates to anyone other than the student. They can follow the process above to download their own certificate.

Contact registration and awards

Looking for something else?

There's lots of helpful advice and guidance on our student information pages. Try searching if you know what you're looking for or if you're not sure where to go, you can browse our A-Z.