Council Tax SMI and Single Person Discount Scotland

One of the most common questions about the SMI disregard in Scotland is whether it stacks with the single person discount. The short answer: the SMI disregard is what triggers the single person discount — they are part of the same mechanism, not separate schemes competing for your bill.

How the Disregard Creates the Discount

The SMI disregard removes a person from the adult headcount for council tax purposes. The discount then follows automatically based on how many counted adults remain:

• Two adults, one disregarded under SMI: one counted adult remains → 25% single person discount
• Two adults, both disregarded (one SMI, one qualifying carer): zero counted adults → 50% discount
• All adults disregarded under SMI: zero counted adults and all are specifically SMI-disregarded → 100% Class 23 exemption

You don't apply separately for the SMI disregard and the single person discount. When the council processes the SMI application and disregards the person, the discount adjusts automatically.

SMI Disregard Plus Carer Disregard

A household with one SMI person and one qualifying live-in carer can stack both disregards:

• The person with SMI is disregarded under the SMI provision
• The live-in carer is disregarded under the carer provision (Regulation 2(3) of the Council Tax (Discounts) (Scotland) Regulations 1992) — provided they give 35+ hours of care per week, live in the same property, are not the spouse or partner of the person they care for, and the person receiving care gets ADP, PADP, PIP, AA, or DLA at the highest care rate

Both are removed from the headcount. Zero counted adults remain, giving a 50% discount under Section 79(2)(b) of the LGFA 1992. (It is not a full exemption because the carer is disregarded on carer grounds, not SMI grounds — Class 23 requires all residents to be SMI-disregarded.)

SMI Disregard Plus Student Disregard

If the household includes an SMI person and a full-time student, both are disregarded. With zero counted adults, the household gets a 50% discount. Again, because not all residents are SMI-disregarded, it is not Class 23.

SMI Disregard vs Council Tax Reduction

Council Tax Reduction (CTR) is a separate, means-tested scheme — it reduces the bill based on household income. The SMI disregard is not income-tested and applies before CTR in the calculation sequence.

They can be claimed together. The council first applies any disability band reduction, then checks for Class 23 exemption, then applies the appropriate percentage discount from disregards, and finally applies CTR against the remaining net bill.

In practice, this means a household could have:

1. A disability band reduction (dropping the bill by one band)
2. A 25% or 50% discount from the SMI and/or carer disregard
3. CTR on top, further reducing or eliminating the remaining amount

Common Confusion: Already Getting 25% Off

Families who already receive the 25% single person discount sometimes assume there is nothing more to claim. But if the person living alone has SMI, they should apply for the SMI disregard to upgrade from a 25% single person discount to a 100% Class 23 exemption — a significant difference.

Similarly, a household of two adults already getting no discount (two counted adults = full bill) could drop to a 25% discount if one person qualifies for the SMI disregard. That alone saves roughly £413 per year on a Band D property in Scotland in 2026/27.

Our Scotland SMI and Disability Council Tax Guide walks through every household combination with worked financial examples, so you can see exactly what applies to your situation and how much the bill drops.

See more Scotland guides →