Ceredigion County Council website

If you, and your partner (if applicable), have reached the qualifying age for State Pension Credit and qualify for Housing Benefit and/or Council Tax Reduction, we can automatically backdate your benefit/reduction up to 3 months before the date you made your claim (as long as you were entitled to benefit/reduction for that period).

For us to work out how much benefit/reduction you will be entitled to, you will need to provide documentary evidence of your income, savings and rent (if applicable) for the period you want to claim.

If you have not yet reached the qualifying age for State Pension Credit, if you qualify for Housing Benefit, we will normally pay your benefit from the Monday after you asked us for an application form (if you return the application form within one calendar month of contacting us).

If you qualify for Council Tax Reduction we will normally pay your reduction from the date you asked for an application form (if you return the application form within one month of contacting us).

Sometimes we can pay benefit/reduction for a period before the date you claimed. This is called backdating. The maximum we can backdate your claim is:

• 1 month for Housing Benefit or Local Housing Allowance
• 3 months for Council Tax Reduction

from the date you make your backdating request, providing you can show that:

• You had 'good cause' for not making your claim earlier
• You could not claim throughout the period you want your claim backdated
• You will need to provide documentary evidence of your income, savings and rent (if applicable) for the period you want to claim

A request for backdating must be made in writing.

We will decide if we can backdate your benefit/reduction based on the information you give us and if you disagree with our decision, you can make an appeal by visiting our Appeals page.

Any change in your income or circumstances could affect your claim. This also applies to the circumstances of anyone living in your household.

If you don’t update within one month of the change happening, you could miss out or have to pay money back.

Changes you need to notify us of include:

• you change address
• you or your partner starts work, changes job or has a pay increase
• there is any change to any income that you or your partner receive (DWP benefits, pensions etc)
• one of your children leaves school or you have had a baby
• anyone moves in or out of the property, even on a temporary basis
• you have a new partner or become married or separated
• there is a change in your savings
• you start or stop paying childcare costs or if the amount changes
• anyone in your home has a change of circumstances 

Please note these are examples and you should tell us immediately about any change that might affect your benefit.

A non-dependant is a person aged 18 or over who lives in your home or uses your home as their main residence on a non-commercial basis, usually a grown-up son, daughter, friend or relative.

Normally, Housing Benefit and/or Council Tax Reduction is reduced for each non-dependant living in your home and is based on the weekly gross income the non-dependant receives.  These figures are set by the Government.

In light of this, you will need to tell us if your non dependant’s income changes, circumstances change, or a non-dependant moves into, or out of your home.

When do you not make a non-dependant deduction?

There will be no non-dependant deduction made in the following cases:

• If you or your partner (if applicable) are registered blind
• If you or your partner (if applicable) are receiving Attendance Allowance
• If you or your partner (if applicable) are receiving the care component of Disability Living Allowance at any rate
• If you or your partner (if applicable) are receiving the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment
• If you or your partner (if applicable) are in receipt of an Armed Forces Independence Payment
• For Housing Benefit - non-dependants aged under 25 and in receipt of Income Support (IS) or income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA(IB)) or Employment and Support Allowance (Income Related) which does not include an amount for the support component or work-related activity component or Universal Credit (where the award is calculated on the basis that the non-dependant does not have any earned income)
• For Council Tax Reduction – non-dependants in receipt of Income Support (IS) or income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA(IB)) or Employment and Support Allowance (Income Related) or Universal Credit (where the award is calculated on the basis that the non-dependant does not have any earned income)
• Non-dependants in receipt of Pension Credit
• Non-dependants who are full-time students (a deduction may be applied if the student is in remunerative work over the summer vacation)
• Non-dependants who are youth trainees
• Non-dependants who are in prison
• Non-dependants in hospital for 52 weeks or more

What are the current levels of deductions for Council Tax Reduction?

Please note: Remunerative work is defined as employment for 16 hours or more per week (for which payment is made or expected to be made).

If you do not have all the evidence and information we need to support your claim, do not delay sending in your application form or you could miss out on benefit. You can send the evidence in later.

Evidence may be needed support your new claim for Housing Benefit, Council Tax Reduction, Discretionary Housing Payment, or before we can action a change of circumstance, such as proof of your income, savings, or proof of rental payments. However, we will advise you what, if anything, you will need to provide.

Evidence can be submitted via email attachment to revenues@ceredigion.gov.uk with your reference number or full name and address, through the post (please do not send valuable documents through the post) or at one of our Customer Service Centres.