Stacking the Annexe Discount With Single Person Discount: How to Save 62.5%

Two Discounts, One Annexe

A single adult living alone in a separately banded family annexe in England can claim both the 50% family annexe reduction and the 25% single person discount. The two reliefs stack, and the combined effect cuts the bill by 62.5%.

This is not a loophole or a grey area. The stacking mechanism is written into the legislation: Regulation 4 of the Council Tax (Reductions for Annexes) (England) Regulations 2013 defines the annexe reduction as half of the amount payable after standard personal discounts have been applied. The single person discount is one of those personal discounts.

How the Calculation Works

Take a Band A annexe with a base annual bill of £1,200.

Step 1: Apply the single person discount. The 25% SPD reduces the bill from £1,200 to £900.

Step 2: Apply the 50% annexe reduction. The annexe reduction halves the remaining £900 to £450.

The annual payment is £450 — a 62.5% saving on the original Band A charge.

The same formula works at any band. On a Band C annexe billed at £2,000, the single person discount takes it to £1,500, and the annexe reduction halves that to £750.

Who Can Stack These Two

You need to meet the requirements of both reliefs independently:

For the single person discount: You must be the only adult counted for council tax purposes living in the annexe. Certain residents are disregarded and do not count — full-time students, people certified as severely mentally impaired, qualifying live-in carers providing at least 35 hours of care per week, and qualifying apprentices.

For the 50% annexe reduction: The annexe must form part of a single property containing a main dwelling, and either be used as part of the main home or be occupied by a relative of the person liable for council tax on the main house.

The typical case is an adult child living alone in a family annexe while the parents occupy the main house. The child qualifies for the single person discount (they live alone) and for the annexe reduction (they are a relative of the main-home occupant).

Common Mistakes

Not claiming the single person discount separately. Some councils apply the annexe reduction automatically when they know a relative occupies the space, but the single person discount usually requires a separate application. If you have only claimed one, check whether you are getting both.

Assuming the discounts are mutually exclusive. They are not. Council staff occasionally misstate this — particularly front-line phone advisers who may not be familiar with the stacking calculation. If you are told the two cannot be combined, ask for a written decision and reference Regulation 4 of SI 2013/2977.

How to Claim Both

Apply for the single person discount through your council's standard SPD form. Apply separately for the 50% annexe reduction, providing evidence of the family relationship and the property layout.

Our Annexe Discounts and Exemptions Guide walks through both applications and explains what to do if the council refuses to stack them.

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