Council Tax
For information about your Council Tax rebate you must contact your local borough or district council.
Council Tax helps pay for local services, and applies to all domestic properties whether owned or rented. How much you pay depends on the valuation band of your property and the responsibility to pay Council Tax usually lies with the occupier.
Each organisation that provides services in your area sets their own proportion of the Council Tax bill you receive. These are:
- Kent County Council
- your district council
- your parish council (if you have one)
- Kent Police
- Kent Fire and Rescue Service
Read a full guide to Council Tax on GOV.UK.
Pay your Council Tax
You pay Council Tax directly to your district council and will receive your bill from them.
For 2025 to 2026, the threshold which would require us to hold a referendum for a council tax increase is 5%, comprising of 2% for expenditure on adult social care and 3% for general expenditure.
On 13 February 2025, the County Council approved a 4.989% Council Tax increase to help balance the 2025 to 2026 budget. This equates to approximately £6.70 extra per month for a band D household.
The 4.989% is within the 5% threshold, and therefore does not require the County Council to hold a referendum.
This table shows how the increase affects each Council Tax band (please remember the figures in this table relate to the Kent County Council element of your Council Tax bill only):
| Band | Total charge for 2024 to 2025 | Increase of 4.989% | Total charge for 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | £1,073.88 | £53.58 | £1,127.46 |
| B | £1,252.86 | £62.51 | £1,315.37 |
| C | £1,431.84 | £71.44 | £1,503.28 |
| D | £1,610.82 | £80.37 | £1,691.19 |
| E | £1,968.78 | £98.23 | £2,067.01 |
| F | £2,326.74 | £116.09 | £2,442.83 |
| G | £2,684.70 | £133.95 | £2,818.65 |
| H | £3,221.64 | £160.74 | £3,382.38 |
To establish how much Council Tax we are able to raise, we multiply the Band D Council Tax charge by the number of Band D equivalent properties in the county (our taxbase), which is provided to us by the district councils of Kent.
For 2025 to 2026 our taxbase is 587,921.91.
587,921.91 multiplied by the band D charge of £1,691.19 equals £994,287,655 (to the nearest £100). This figure is called our Council Tax requirement.
Calculating our budget
To know how much is available to spend on services, we first need to calculate how much money we will raise through:
- grants
- Council Tax
- business rates
Our net budget requirement is the cost of services funded by these sources, and the table below shows how much we will get from each in 2025 to 2026.
| Source of funding | Amount (to nearest £1000) |
|---|---|
| Council Tax requirement | 994,287.7 |
| Grants within core spending power and other unringfenced grants | 464,371,3 |
| Local share of business rates | 69,097.6 |
| Council’s share of Council Tax and business rates collection funds | 3,523.2 |
| Net budget requirement | 1,531,279.8 |
(Figures are subject to rounding)
Read more about our 2025 to 2026 budget
Understanding your bill
| Typical Council Tax bill breakdown | % increase on 2024 to 2025 Council Tax bill | Amount for band D |
|---|---|---|
| Kent County Council | 2.995% | £1,426.05 |
| Kent County Council (for Adult Social Care funding) | 1.995% Kent County Council’s share of Council Tax will increase by 4.992% in 2024 to 2025, which is this amount and the amount above) | £265.14 This is the 1.995% increase for adult social care funding for 2025 to 2026 ** added to the increases for adult social care, which were first introduced on 1 April 2016, for a Band Council Tax bill. |
| Kent Police and Crime Commissioner | 5.51% | £270.15 |
| Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue | 5.47% | £94.86 |
| District or Borough Council | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to. | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to. |
| Parish council | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to. | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to. |
** This is a 1.995% increase on the total 2024 to 2025 Kent County Council charge. How this element of your Council Tax increase is calculated:
- The total 2024 to 2025 charge was £1,610.82.
- 1.995% of this total charge is £32.13.
- The Adult Social Care charge for 2024 to 2025 was £233.01.
- The Adult Social Care charge for 2025 to 2026 is £265.14 (£233.01 + £32.13).
How your Council Tax is spent by our main services
| Service | % Council Tax | Amount for band D |
|---|---|---|
| Adults and older people | 42.33% | £715.81 |
| Children's social care | 14.92% | £252.26 |
| Transport services | 9.51% | £160.77 |
| Borrowing costs, contributions to/from reserves and other corporate costs | 8.06% | £136.32 |
| Management, support services and overheads | 7.01% | £118.50 |
| Waste services | 6.60% | £111.64 |
| Highways | 3.40% | £57.44 |
| Children's other services | 2.33% | £39.36 |
| Costs of running our operational premises | 1.99% | £33.59 |
| Other direct services to the public (incl Public Protection, Environment, Regeneration, Planning and Local Democracy) | 1.82% | £30.86 |
| Community services | 1.35% | £22.80 |
| Schools' services | 0.70% | £11.84 |
| Total: | 100.00% | £1,691.19 |
None of your Council Tax goes towards funding public health or education provision for schools and high needs education, as these services are fully funded by grant.
There are some costs associated with school transport and support for schools, as well as assessment of special needs which are funded from our net budget requirement (which includes Council Tax, business rates and general government grants) and these costs are shown within transport services, children's other services and schools’ services amounts.
The cost of supporting unaccompanied asylum-seeking (UAS) children is funded by external grants from the Home Office and Department for Education with none funded from our net budget requirement. There is a very small amount funded from our net budget requirement (which includes Council Tax, business rates and general government grants) where the council has a legal duty to safeguard the welfare of children, young people leaving care and vulnerable adults when a person has “no recourse to public funds” (NRPF) and is excluded from mainstream welfare benefits. This expenditure represents 0.032% of our Council Tax charge and 55p of the £1,691.19 Band D Council Tax charge for 2025 to 2026.
For 2024 to 2025, the threshold which would require us to hold a referendum for a council tax increase is 5%, comprising of 2% for expenditure on adult social care and 3% for general expenditure.
On 19 February 2024, the County Council approved a 4.992% Council Tax increase to help balance the 2024 to 2025 budget. This equates to approximately £6.38 extra per month for a band D household.
The 4.992% is within the 5% threshold, and made up of 2 parts:
- 2.998% general increase.
- A further 1.994% for the 'adult social care precept'. This is the additional money councils raise from Council Tax in order to help pay for adult social care services. This amount can only be used as part of a council's adult social care budget.
This table shows how the increase affects each Council Tax band (please remember the figures in this table relate to the Kent County Council element of your Council Tax bill only):
| Band | Total charge for 2023 to 2024 | Increase of 2.998% | Increase in Adult Social Care Precept of 1.994% | Total charge for 2024 to 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | £1,022.82 | £30.66 | £20.40 | £1,073.88 |
| B | £1,193.29 | £35.77 | £23.80 | £1,252.86 |
| C | £1,363.76 | £40.88 | £27.20 | £1,431.84 |
| D | £1,534.23 | £45.99 | £30.60 | £1,610.82 |
| E | £1,875.17 | £56.21 | £37.40 | £1,968.78 |
| F | £2,216.11 | £66.43 | £44.20 | £2,326.74 |
| G | £2,557.05 | £76.65 | £51.00 | £2,684.70 |
| H | £3,068.46 | £91.98 | £61.20 | £3,221.64 |
- Read more about our 2024 to 2025 budget
- Read the Adult Social Care Statement and more information about the Adult Social Care Precept (PDF, 156.6 KB)
To establish how much Council Tax we are able to raise, we multiply the Band D Council Tax charge by the number of Band D equivalent properties in the county (our taxbase), which is provided to us by the district councils of Kent.
For 2024 to 2025 our taxbase is 580,864.03.
580,864.03 multiplied by the band D charge of £1,610.82 equals £935,667,397 (to the nearest £100). This figure is called our Council Tax requirement.
Calculating our budget
To know how much is available to spend on services, we first need to calculate how much money we will raise through:
- grants
- Council Tax
- business rates
Our net budget requirement is the cost of services funded by these sources, and the table below shows how much we will get from each in 2024 to 2025.
| Source of funding | Amount (to nearest £1000) |
|---|---|
| Council Tax requirement | 935,667.3 |
| Grants within core spending power and other unringfenced grants | 422,900.5 |
| Local share of business rates | 65,740.7 |
| Council’s share of Council Tax and business rates collection funds | 5,198.3 |
| Net budget requirement | 1,429,506.8 |
(Figures are subject to rounding)
Read more about our 2024 to 2025 budget
Understanding your bill
| Typical Council Tax bill breakdown | % increase on 2023 to 2024 Council Tax bill | Amount for band D |
|---|---|---|
| Kent County Council | 2.998% | £1,377.81 This is the share of a Band D Council Tax bill that Kent County Council will receive in 2024 to 2025. This amount does not include the increase for adult social care funding since 2016 to 17 (see row below). |
| Kent County Council (for Adult Social Care funding) | 1.994% Kent County Council’s share of Council Tax will increase by 4.992% in 2024 to 2025, which is this amount and the amount above) | £233.01 This is the 1.994% increase for adult social care funding for 2024 to 2025 ** added to the increases for adult social care, which were first introduced on 1 April 2016, for a Band Council Tax bill. The Government requires all local authorities to show the adult social care funding increase in this way on Council Tax bills. |
| Kent Police and Crime Commissioner | 5.35% | £256.15 |
| Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue | 2.99% | £89.91 |
| District or Borough Council | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to. | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to. |
| Parish council | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to. | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to. |
** This is a 1.994% increase on the total 2023 to 2024 Kent County Council charge. How this element of your Council Tax increase is calculated:
- The total 2023 to 2024 charge was £1,534.23.
- 1.994% of this total charge is £30.60.
- The Adult Social Care charge for 2023 to 2024 was £202.41.
- The Adult Social Care charge for 2024 to 2025 is £233.01 (£202.41 + £30.60).
How your Council Tax is spent by our main services
| Service | % Council Tax | Amount for band D |
|---|---|---|
| Adults and older people | 41.00% | £660.42 |
| Children's social care | 14.68% | £236.50 |
| Transport services | 9.33% | £150.28 |
| Borrowing costs, contributions to/from reserves and other corporate costs | 8.11% | £130.71 |
| Waste services | 7.37% | £118.76 |
| Management, support services and overheads | 7.17% | £115.44 |
| Highways | 3.41% | £54.85 |
| Children's other services | 2.54% | £40.90 |
| Costs of running our operational premises | 2.26% | £36.47 |
| Other direct services to the public (incl Public Protection, Environment, Regeneration, Planning and Local Democracy) | 2.09% | £33.73 |
| Community services | 1.38% | £22.17 |
| Schools' services | 0.66% | £10.59 |
| Total: | 100.00% | £1,610.82 |
None of your Council Tax goes towards funding public health or education provision for schools and high needs education, as these services are fully funded by grant.
There are some costs associated with school transport and support for schools, as well as assessment of special needs which are funded from our net budget requirement (which includes Council Tax, business rates and general government grants) and these costs are shown within transport services, children's other services and schools’ services amounts.
The cost of supporting unaccompanied asylum-seeking (UAS) children is funded by external grants from the Home Office and Department for Education with none funded from our net budget requirement. There is a very small amount funded from our net budget requirement (which includes Council Tax, business rates and general government grants) where the council has a legal duty to safeguard the welfare of children, young people leaving care and vulnerable adults when a person has “no recourse to public funds” (NRPF) and is excluded from mainstream welfare benefits. This expenditure represents 0.034% of our Council Tax charge and 54p of the £1,610.82 Band D Council Tax charge for 2024 to 2025.
On 9 February 2023, we approved a 4.995% Council Tax increase to help balance the 2023 to 2024 budget. This equates to approximately £1.40 extra per week for a band D household.
The 4.995% is made up of 2 parts:
- 2.9995% general increase, which is below the 3% threshold which would require us to hold a referendum
- a further 1.9956% for the 'adult social care precept'. This is the additional money councils raise from Council Tax in order to help pay for adult social care services. This amount can only be used as part of a council's adult social care budget.
This table shows how the increase affects each Council Tax band (please remember the figures in this table relate to the Kent County Council element of your Council Tax bill only):
| Band | Total charge for 2022 to 2023 | Increase less than the 3% referendum limit | Additional 2% Adult Social Care Levy | Total charge for 2023 to 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | £974.16 | £29.22 | £19.44 | £1,022.82 |
| B | £1,136.52 | £34.09 | £22.68 | £1,193.29 |
| C | £1,298.88 | £38.96 | £25.92 | £1,363.76 |
| D | £1,461.24 | £43.83 | £29.16 | £1,534.23 |
| E | £1,785.96 | £53.57 | £35.64 | £1,875.17 |
| F | £2,110.68 | £63.31 | £42.12 | £2,216.11 |
| G | £2,435.40 | £73.05 | £48.60 | £2,557.05 |
| H | £2,922.48 | £87.66 | £58.32 | £3,068.46 |
- Read more about our 2023 to 2024 budget
- Read the Adult Social Care Statement and more information about the Adult Social Care Precept (PDF, 135.4 KB)
To establish how much Council Tax we are able to raise, we multiply the Band D Council Tax charge by the number of Band D equivalent properties in the county (our taxbase), which is provided to us by the district councils of Kent.
For 2023 to 2024 our taxbase is 571,478.39.
571,478.39 multiplied by the band D charge of £1,534.23 equals £876,779,300 (to the nearest £100). This figure is called our Council Tax requirement.
Calculating our budget
To know how much is available to spend on services, we first need to calculate how much money we will raise through:
- grants
- Council Tax
- business rates
Our net budget requirement is the cost of services funded by these sources, and the table below shows how much we will get from each in 2023 to 2024.
| Source of funding | Amount (to nearest £1000) |
|---|---|
| Council Tax requirement | 876,779.3 |
| Grants within core spending power and other unringfenced grants | 369,478.7 |
| Local share of business rates | 60,197.7 |
| Council’s share of Council Tax and business rates collection funds | 6,807.4 |
| Drawdown from reserves of Section 31 grant for compensation for irrecoverable local taxation losses due to Covid-19 | 2,347.5 |
| Net budget requirement | 1,315,610.6 |
Read more about our 2023 to 2024 budget
Understanding your bill
| Typical Council Tax bill breakdown | % increase on 2022 to 2023 Council Tax bill | Amount for band D |
|---|---|---|
| Kent County Council | 2.9995% | £1,331.82 (The share of Council Tax that Kent County Council will receive in 2023 to 2024. This amount does not include the increase for adult social care funding since 2016 to 17) |
| Kent County Council (for Adult Social Care funding) | 1.9956% (Kent County Council’s share of Council Tax will increase by 2.994% in 2022 to 2023, which is this amount and the amount above) | £202.41 (This is the 1% increase for adult social care funding for 2023 to 2024 ** added to the increases for adult social care which were first introduced on 1 April 2016) The Government requires all local authorities to show the adult social care funding increase in this way on Council Tax bills. |
| Kent Police and Crime Commissioner | 6.57% | £243.15 |
| Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue | 6.01% | £87.30 |
| District or Borough Council | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to |
| Parish council | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to |
** This is a 1.9956% increase on the total 2022 to 2023 Kent County Council charge. How this element of your Council Tax increase is calculated:
- The total 2022 to 2023 charge was £1,461.24.
- 1.9956% of this total charge is £29.16.
- The Adult Social Care charge for 2022 to 2023 was £173.25
- The Adult Social Care charge for 2023 to 2024 is £202.41 (£173.25 + £29.16).
How your Council Tax is spent by our main services
| Service | % Council Tax | Amount for Band D |
|---|---|---|
| Adults and older people | 40.49% | £621.20 |
| Children's social care | 13.79% | £211.50 |
| Borrowing costs | 9.74% | £149.41 |
| Management, support services and overheads | 7.66% | £117.49 |
| Waste services | 7.39% | £113.31 |
| Transport services | 7.60% | £116.53 |
| Highways | 3.55% | £54.46 |
| Children's other services | 2.82% | £43.23 |
| Costs of running our operational premises | 2.82% | £43.26 |
| Other direct services to the public (incl Public Protection, Environment, Regeneration, Planning & Local Democracy) | 2.23% | £34.17 |
| Community services | 1.36% | £20.89 |
| Schools' services | 0.57% | £8.78 |
| Total: | 100.00% | £1,534.23 |
None of your Council Tax goes towards funding public health or schools, as these services are fully funded by grants.
Most asylum related costs are funded from an external grant provided by the Home Office except for costs relating to individuals with “no recourse to public funds” for which the 2023 to 2024 budget is £350,300. This is the only element that is funded from our net budget requirement (which includes Council Tax, Business Rates and general government grants). It represents less than 0.03% of our Council Tax charge and 38p of the £1,534.23 Band D Council Tax charge for 2023 to 2024.
How your Council Tax is spent
Find out how Council Tax is spent by:
- Kent Police
- Kent Fire and Rescue Service
- Ashford Borough Council
- Canterbury City Council
- Dartford Borough Council
- Dover District Council
- Folkestone and Hythe District Council
- Gravesham Borough Council
- Maidstone Borough Council
- Sevenoaks District Council
- Swale Borough Council
- Thanet District Council
- Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council
- Tunbridge Wells Borough Council.
Questions about your Council Tax bill
Contact your district council for any enquiries relating to your Council Tax including:
- appeals
- benefits
- changing your details
- exemptions
- fraud
- reductions.