Council Tax
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.
On 13 February 2020, we approved a 3.99% Council Tax increase to help balance the 2020-21 budget. This equates to approximately £1 extra per week for a band D household.
The 3.99% is made up of 2 parts:
- 1.99% general increase, which is below the 2% threshold which would require us to hold a referendum
- a further 1.99% 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 2019 - 20 charge | Increase less than the 2% referendum limit | Additional 2% Adult Social Care levy | Total charge for 2020 - 21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | £866.28 | £17.28 | £17.28 | £900.84 |
| B | £1,010.66 | £20.16 | £20.16 | £1,050.98 |
| C | £1,155.04 | £23.04 | £23.04 | £1,201.12 |
| D | £1,299.42 | £25.92 | £25.92 | £1,351.26 |
| E | £1,588.18 | £31.68 | £31.68 | £1,651.54 |
| F | £1,876.94 | £37.44 | £37.44 | £1,951.82 |
| G | £2,165.70 | £43.20 | £43.20 | £2,252.10 |
| H | £2,598.84 | £51.84 | £51.84 | £2,702.52 |
- Read more about our 2020-21 budget
- Read the Adult Social Care Statement and more information about the Adult Social Care Precept (PDF, 176.5 KB)
Understanding your bill
The table below provides information on each line in your Council Tax bill and explains how your bill has changed from last year.
| Typical Council Tax bill breakdown | % increase on 2019 - 20 Council Tax bill | Amount for band C |
|---|---|---|
| Kent County Council | 1.995% | £1,095.68 (The share of Council Tax that Kent County Council will receive in 2020-21. This amount does not include the 2% increase for adult social care funding which was first introduced on 1 April 2016). |
|
Kent County Council (for Adult Social Care funding) | 1.995% (Kent County Council’s share of Council Tax will increase by 3.99% in 2020-21, which is this amount and the amount above) | £105.44 (This is the 2% increase for adult social care funding for 2020-21** added to the 2% increase for adult social care which was 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 | 5.18% (up to £24 for band D property) | £180.58 |
| Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue | 1.97% | £70.48 |
| District or Borough Council | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to. | |
| Parish Council | ||
| Total | ||
** This is a 1.995% increase on the total 2019-20 Kent County Council charge.
- The total 2019-20 charge was £1,155.04 (£1,155.04 x 1.995% = £23.04).
- The Adult Social Care charge for 2019-20 was £82.40 (£82.40 + £23.04 = £105.44).
How your Council Tax is spent
The table below shows a breakdown of how we spend the Council Tax for a band C property on our main council services.
| Service | Amount for band C | % of total |
|---|---|---|
| Adults and older people | £469.78 | 39.11% |
| Children's social care | £173.04 | 14.41% |
| Borrowing costs | £134.24 | 11.18% |
| Transport services | £91.72 | 7.64% |
| Waste services | £89.89 | 7.48% |
| Management, support services and overheads | £85.08 | 7.08% |
| Highways | £42.27 | 3.52% |
| Children's other services | £34.49 | 2.87% |
| Other direct services to the public | £27.33 | 2.28% |
| Costs of running our operational premises | £25.83 | 2.15% |
| Community services | £16.7 | 1.39% |
| Unallocated | £7.46 | 0.62% |
| Schools' services | £3.29 | 0.27% |
| Total | £1201.12 | 100% |
By other Kent organisations
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
We pay a levy to the Environment Agency Southern Regional Flood and Coastal Committee of £442,054. (compared to £420,366 in 2019-20).
On 14 February 2019 we approved a 4.99% Council Tax increase to help balance the 2019-20 budget. This equates to approximately £1.18 extra per week for a band D household.
The 4.99% is made up of 2 parts:
- 2.99% general increase, which is below the 3% threshold which would require us to hold a referendum
- a further 2% 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:
| Band | Total 2018 - 19 charge | Increase less than the 3% referendum limit | Additional 2% Adult Social Care levy | Total charge for 2019 - 20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | £825.12 | £24.72 | £16.44 | £866.28 |
| B | £962.64 | £28.84 | £19.18 | £1,010.66 |
| C | £1,100.16 | £32.96 | £21.92 | £1,155.04 |
| D | £1,237.68 | £37.08 | £24.66 | £1,299.42 |
| E | £1,512.72 | £45.32 | £30.14 | £1,588.18 |
| F | £1,787.76 | £53.56 | £35.62 | £1,876.94 |
| G | £2,062.80 | £61.80 | £41.10 | £2,165.70 |
| H | £2,475.36 | £74.16 | £49.32 | £2,598.84 |
- Read more about our 2019-20 budget
- Read the Adult Social Care Statement and more information about the Adult Social Care Precept (PDF, 176.5 KB)
- Read more about how our budget is funded
Understanding your bill
The table below provides information on each line in your Council Tax bill and explains how your bill has changed from last year.
| Typical Council Tax bill breakdown | % increase on 2018 - 19 Council Tax bill | Amount for band C |
|---|---|---|
| Kent County Council | 2.99% | £1,072.64 (The share of Council Tax that Kent County Council will receive in 2019-20. This amount does not include the 2% increase for adult social care funding. |
|
Kent County Council (for Adult Social Care funding) | 2.0% (Kent County Council’s share of Council Tax will increase by 4.99% in 2019-20, which is this amount and the amount above) | £82.40 (This is the 2% increase for adult social care funding for 2019-20. 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 | 14.19% (up to £24 for band D property) | £171.69 |
| Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue | 2.9% | £69.12 |
| District or Borough Council | These amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to. | |
| Parish Council | ||
| Total | ||
How your Council Tax is spent
The table below shows a breakdown of how we spend the Council Tax for a band C property on our main council services.
| Service | Amount for band C | % |
|---|---|---|
| Adults and older people | £442.92 | 38.35% |
| Children's social care | £178.79 | 15.48% |
| Financing items | £122.82 | 10.63% |
| Waste management | £88.99 | 7.70% |
| Management support and overheads | £87.73 | 7.60% |
| Transport services | £86.26 | 7.47% |
| Highways | £39.88 | 3.45% |
| Other children's services | £29.23 | 2.53% |
| Other direct services to the public | £25.94 | 2.25% |
| Corporate landlord | £24.42 | 2.11% |
| Community services | £17.29 | 1.50% |
| Unallocated | £7.48 | 0.65% |
| Schools' services | £3.29 | 0.28% |
| Total | £1,155.04 | 100% |
Our budget shows how we will spend our funding in 2019-20.
By other Kent organisations
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
We pay a levy to the Environment Agency Southern Regional Flood and Coastal Committee of £420,366 (compared to £399,258 in 2018-19).