As you may or may not be aware, there is a council tax rebate coming this month for many people across the country. In an attempt to combat the cost of living crisis, the government is funding a £150 rebate for every household in bands A - D.
The rebate will not need to be paid back, and you'll still get it if your council tax bill is less than £150 - if you're on local council tax support or if you're a student, for example. This also includes under 18s, dependent relatives living in annexes, and those with severe mental impairments, but not other people who are exempt from paying council tax.
If you pay your council tax by direct debit, you do not need to do anything: your local council will pay the rebate directly into your bank account. If you do not, you'll need to apply for it; the process for this depends on where you live.
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Bristol City Council has not yet announced its process on how to claim the payment if you're not on a direct debit. It simply advises people to keep checking this page on its website.
As for when the rebate will be paid, it's not precisely clear: the government says it will begin to be paid "from April 2022", while BCC says it "expects these payments to begin in April". However, neither will say on what date, nor are there any guarantees that everyone will get the payment by the end of the month.
If you don't know what council tax band you're in, you can check on the government's website. You can also check which is your local council.
Note the payment is per household, not per person. So whether you're in a house of eight people or one person, you'll still get £150 total.
Finally, bear in mind the rebate will be paid directly as a one-off £150 payment, rather than spread as a discount over your whole council tax bill or taken. The government says it took this option so as to get the money to people more quickly and so people exempt from paying council tax would not miss out.
