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Detained person exemption

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A person can be disregarded for Council Tax if they are detained in certain circumstances.

Find out if you’re eligible

Those eligible include people:

  • detained in a prison, hospital or any other place by a court order
  • detained under The Immigration Act 1971
  • detained under The Mental Health Act 198

An exemption applies to a property if the owner or tenant is detained and the property is unoccupied.

No discount or exemption will apply if:

  • the person is in prison for non-payment of either Council Tax or a fine
  • there are still 2 or more people in the household over 18 who are counted for Council Tax purposes

How to apply

To apply for an exemption, please complete our form. You’ll need to know your Council Tax account number.

For Bournemouth residents:

We need confirmation to process your claim.

Please ask the detention establishment (for example, prison) to complete the supporting letter. You can upload this along with your application.

Alternatively, you can ask the establishment to email the supporting letter to counciltax.bournemouth@bcpcouncil.gov.uk.

For Christchurch residents:

For Poole residents:

If you need any help with completing the form, please contact us.

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