How to Respond to a Council Tax Occupancy Questionnaire

Why You Received an Occupancy Questionnaire

If your council has sent a vacancy or occupancy questionnaire, it is reviewing whether your property qualifies for the empty homes premium. Councils routinely send these forms to properties they suspect are unoccupied — triggered by low utility consumption, electoral register gaps, or a report from neighbours.

The questionnaire asks you to confirm who lives at the property, how it is furnished, whether it is available for sale or rent, and how long it has been vacant. Your answers directly determine whether the council classifies the property as a long-term empty home, a second home, or someone's main residence.

How to Handle the Form

Don't ignore it. If you fail to respond, the council may decide the property's status from the information it has and apply the premium supported by that evidence. Follow the response deadline in the council's letter; there is no single national questionnaire deadline.

Be accurate but make sure your answers reflect the full picture:

• If the property is being marketed for sale, say so and note the estate agent, portal listing, and asking price. This supports a Class G exception (actively marketed for sale), which blocks the premium for up to 12 months.
• If the former occupier now permanently resides in a care home or hospital and left the property empty, state this clearly. A Class E exemption can remove the base council tax entirely while its conditions are met.
• If major structural repairs are underway, list the works and the contractor. A Class M exception protects against the premium for up to 12 months.
• If someone is living in the property as their main residence, say so. The premium only applies to properties with no resident.

Attach supporting evidence with your response even if the form doesn't ask for it. Estate agent contracts, care home admission letters, building control notices — submitting upfront is faster than waiting for the council to request them separately.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Describing the property as "empty between tenants" without mentioning marketing. If you're a landlord between tenancies, the response should mention your letting agent and any active advertising. Without this, the council has no basis to consider a Class H exception.

Saying the property is "unfurnished" when furniture remains. The distinction between substantially furnished (second home rules) and substantially unfurnished (empty home rules) affects which premium regime applies and which exceptions are available. If major furniture is still present, say so.

Listing occupation that lasted less than six weeks. Short stays under six continuous weeks don't reset the empty property clock under Section 11B(3). If someone stayed briefly, it's honest to mention it, but don't present it as evidence the property isn't empty — the council will discount it.

If the questionnaire arrives and you believe the premium shouldn't apply, the Empty Home Premium Guide covers each exception in detail with the evidence each one needs.

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