Apply for a Council Tax exemption if a property owned by a charity is unoccupied

A property owned by a charity or charitable organisation may be exempt from Council Tax if it:

• was last used for the purpose of the charity or charitable organisation
• is unoccupied for more than 6 weeks and up to 6 months

The exemption will not apply when a charity first becomes liable to pay Council Tax for a property. This is because the last time the property was occupied will not have been for the purposes of the charity.

The exemption will end if the property becomes occupied or is no longer owned by the charity or charitable organisation.

Who can apply

A charity or charitable organisation can apply.

What you need to apply

You'll need to fill in and send us the application form with proof that you're eligible for the exemption.

Information about the charity

We need:

• the full name of the charity or charitable organisation
• the registered head office address
• Charity Commission registration number

If you cannot provide the Charity Commission registration number, we'll need either:

• a copy of the organisation's Memorandum and Article of Association
• a letter from HM Revenues and Customs (HMRC) confirming the organisation is registered as a charity for tax purposes
• a letter explaining why the organisation is not registered for tax purposes if that's the case

Information about the property

We need:

• the full address of the property you're applying for
• the Council Tax account number
• a full list of all properties in the borough that the charity owns or leases in furtherance of their objectives

Apply

Download and fill in the application form:

Send your application by post or email to:

Royal Borough of Greenwich
Revenues Service
The Woolwich Centre
35 Wellington Street
London SE18 6HQ

Email: counciltax@royalgreenwich.gov.uk

What happens next

It can take up to 21 days for us to process your application and decide if you're eligible.

We may ask you for more proof.

Once we confirm the charitable status, we'll add your charity or charitable organisation to our approved Class B exemption list. We'll then award the exemption each time one of your qualifying properties becomes unoccupied.

We'll send an updated bill to the registered head office address each time.

You must tell us within 21 days about any change in your circumstances that may affect your entitlement to a discount or exemption. If you do not tell us, you could get a £70 fixed penalty.

If we decide you're not eligible, we'll tell you in writing. You can appeal our decision.