Council Tax Discount When Partner Goes Into a Care Home or Hospital

When a Care Home Becomes Their Main Residence

Council tax counts adult residents whose sole or main residence is in the dwelling. When your partner moves permanently into a care home, hospital, or nursing home, that facility becomes their main residence — not your home. The council should then treat you as the sole countable adult, qualifying you for a 25% single person discount.

The key word is permanent. A short hospital stay or a temporary respite placement in a care home does not shift main residence. Your partner's domestic hub must move to the facility.

The Two Routes to a Discount

Route 1: Sole Occupancy After Permanent Move

If your partner's move into care is permanent and you are the only remaining adult in the dwelling, you qualify for a 25% single person discount under Section 11(1)(a) of the Local Government Finance Act 1992. This is the most straightforward route.

Evidence the council will want:

• Confirmation letter from the care home manager stating the admission date and that the placement is permanent
• Your partner's council tax account at the old address closed or updated
• Any social services or NHS funding assessment showing the placement is long-term

Route 2: Disregard Under Schedule 1

Your partner may be disregarded as a patient in a hospital or care home under Schedule 1, paragraphs 6–7 of the LGFA 1992, only if that facility is their sole or main residence.

A short stay where your home remains their sole or main residence does not meet that test, so this patient disregard does not apply.

In practice, the distinction between temporary and permanent can be blurry. If your partner has been in hospital for months with no realistic discharge date, contact your billing authority to discuss the position. Many councils will apply the discount from the date permanent residency became clear.

What About the SMI Disregard?

If your partner has a severe mental impairment — dementia is the most common cause — they may qualify for the SMI disregard regardless of whether they move into care. The SMI disregard requires a doctor's certificate confirming permanent severe impairment of intelligence and social functioning, plus entitlement to a qualifying benefit (Attendance Allowance, PIP Daily Living, DLA Middle or Higher Care, Universal Credit LCWRA, or Employment and Support Allowance).

If your partner with SMI moves into a care home, you get the single person discount either through sole occupancy or through the SMI disregard — the result is the same 25% off. But if they had SMI before moving into care, the disregard may have been backdatable further. Check whether you could have claimed earlier.

The Empty Dwelling Exemption

If you also leave the property — or if it becomes unoccupied because both you and your partner moved into separate care facilities — the dwelling may qualify for a Class E or Class I exemption under the Council Tax (Exempt Dwellings) Order 1992:

• Class E: An unoccupied dwelling previously occupied by someone who has moved permanently into a hospital or care home
• Class I: An unoccupied dwelling previously occupied by someone who has moved elsewhere to receive personal care

These exemptions make the property completely exempt from council tax. If the qualifying conditions are met, the exemption can run from the date the property becomes unoccupied; notify the council and provide evidence.

Backdating the Discount

If your partner moved into care months or years ago and you have been paying full council tax, you can claim the discount retrospectively. There is no statutory time limit on backdating a single person discount in the LGFA 1992 — entitlement is a daily legal fact. If you were the sole countable adult on a given day, the 25% applied to that day as a matter of law.

Provide evidence of the admission date (care home confirmation, hospital records, social services assessments), and the council should backdate the discount accordingly.

The England Single Person Discount guide includes a retrospective claim calculator and worked examples for care home, hospital, and bereavement scenarios.

See more England guides →