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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.

Pay your Council Tax

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):

BandTotal charge for 2023 to 2024Increase 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

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 fundingAmount (to nearest £1000)
Council Tax requirement935,667.3
Grants within core spending power and other unringfenced grants422,900.5
Local share of business rates65,740.7
Council’s share of Council Tax and business rates collection funds5,198.3
Net budget requirement1,429,506.8

(Figures are subject to rounding)

Read more about our 2024 to 2025 budget

Understanding your bill

How each part of your Council Tax has changed from last year
Typical Council Tax bill breakdown% increase on 2023 to 2024 Council Tax billAmount for band D
Kent County Council2.998%

£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 Commissioner5.35%£256.15
Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue2.99%£89.91
District or Borough CouncilThese 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 councilThese 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 TaxAmount for band D
Adults and older people41.00%£660.42
Children's social care14.68%£236.50
Transport services9.33%£150.28
Borrowing costs, contributions to/from reserves and other corporate costs8.11%£130.71
Waste services7.37%£118.76
Management, support services and overheads7.17%£115.44
Highways3.41%£54.85
Children's other services2.54%£40.90
Costs of running our operational premises2.26%£36.47
Other direct services to the public
(incl Public Protection, Environment, Regeneration, Planning and Local Democracy)		2.09%£33.73
Community services1.38%£22.17
Schools' services0.66%£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):

BandTotal charge for 2022 to 2023Increase less than the 3% referendum limitAdditional 2% Adult Social Care LevyTotal 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

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 fundingAmount (to nearest £1000)
Council Tax requirement876,779.3
Grants within core spending power and other unringfenced grants369,478.7
Local share of business rates60,197.7
Council’s share of Council Tax and business rates collection funds6,807.4
Drawdown from reserves of Section 31 grant for compensation for irrecoverable local taxation losses due to Covid-192,347.5
Net budget requirement1,315,610.6

Read more about our 2023 to 2024 budget

Understanding your bill

How each part of your Council Tax has changed from last year
Typical Council Tax bill breakdown% increase on 2022 to 2023 Council Tax billAmount for band D
Kent County Council2.9995%£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 Commissioner6.57%£243.15
Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue6.01%£87.30
District or Borough CouncilThese amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax toThese amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to
Parish councilThese amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax toThese 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 TaxAmount for Band D
Adults and older people40.49%£621.20
Children's social care13.79%£211.50
Borrowing costs9.74%£149.41
Management, support services and overheads7.66%£117.49
Waste services7.39%£113.31
Transport services7.60%£116.53
Highways3.55%£54.46
Children's other services2.82%£43.23
Costs of running our operational premises2.82%£43.26
Other direct services to the public
(incl Public Protection, Environment, Regeneration, Planning & Local Democracy)		2.23%£34.17
Community services1.36%£20.89
Schools' services0.57%£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.

On 10 February 2022, we approved a 2.99% Council Tax increase to help balance the 2022 to 2023 budget. This equates to approximately 82p extra per week for a band D household.

The 2.99% 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 0.99% 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):

BandTotal charge for 2021 to 22Increase less than the 2% referendum limitAdditional 1% Adult Social Care LevyTotal charge for 2022 to 2023
A£945.84£115.50£858.66£974.16
B£1,103.48£134.75£1,001.77£1,136.52
C£1,261.12£154.00£1,144.88£1,298.88
D£1,418.76£173.25£1,287.99£1,461.24
E£1,734.04£211.75£1,574.21£1,785.96
F£2,049.32£250.25£1,860.43£2,110.68
G£2,364.60£288.75£2,146.65£2,435.40
H£2,837.52£346.50£2,575.98£2,922.48

Understanding your bill

How each part of your Council Tax has changed from last year
Typical Council Tax bill breakdown% increase on 2021 to 2022 Council Tax billAmount for band D
Kent County Council1.998%£1,287.99 (The share of Council Tax that Kent County Council will receive in 2022 to 2023. This amount does not include the increase for adult social care funding since 2016-17)
Kent County Council (for Adult Social Care funding)0.996% (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)£173.25 (This is the 1% increase for adult social care funding for 2022 to 2023 ** 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 Commissioner4.58%£228.15
Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue1.89%£82.35
District or Borough CouncilThese amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax toThese amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to
Parish councilThese amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax toThese amounts will vary depending on which district council you pay your council tax to

** This is a 0.996% increase on the total 2021 to 2022 Kent County Council charge. How this element of your Council Tax increase is calculated:

  • The total 2021 to 2022 charge was £1,418.76.
  • 0.996% of this total charge is £14.13.
  • The Adult Social Care charge for 2021 to 2022 was £159.12
  • The Adult Social Care charge for 2022 to 2023 is £173.25 (£159.12 + £14.13).

How your Council Tax is spent by our main services

How your Council Tax is spent by our main services
Service% Council TaxAmount for band D
Adults and older people40.42%£590.64
Children's social care13.91%£203.23
Borrowing costs10.94%£159.87
Management, support services and overheads7.99%£116.74
Waste services7.04%£102.90
Transport services6.59%£96.25
Highways3.41%£49.79
Children's other services3.06%£44.78
Costs of running our operational premises2.45%£35.73
Other direct services to the public
(incl Public Protection, Environment, Regeneration, Planning & Local Democracy)		2.17%£31.73
Community services1.40%£20.44
Schools' services0.63%£9.14
Total:100.00%£1,461.24

None of your Council Tax goes towards funding public health or schools and high needs education services as these services are fully funded by grants.