How to Fill in the Dudley Council Tax Reduction Form — Step by Step

The Dudley Council Tax Reduction application is a combined Housing Benefit and CTR form — even if you only want council tax help, you go through the same form. It is available online through the MyDudley portal at my.dudley.gov.uk, and the questions cover your household, income, savings, and housing costs.

Knowing what the form asks before you start saves time and prevents the mistakes that cause processing delays.

Before You Open the Form

Gather your figures and documents first; the form asks about your household, income, savings, and housing costs:

• Your council tax account number (on your annual bill or any council tax letter)
• National Insurance numbers for you and your partner
• Income details: recent Universal Credit statement (full breakdown, not just the payment amount), last two months of payslips, or self-employment accounts
• Bank statements: last two consecutive months for every account you and your partner hold — current accounts, savings accounts, Post Office accounts
• Benefit award letters: PIP, DLA, Attendance Allowance, Carer's Allowance, Child Benefit
• Rent agreement (if you are also applying for Housing Benefit)
• Proof of identity: passport, driving licence, or birth certificate for you and your partner

Section by Section

Personal details. Your name, date of birth, National Insurance number, address, and how long you have lived there. If you have a partner, their details go here too. The form asks whether you are single, part of a couple, or a lone parent — this determines your applicable amount.

Household members. List every person living in the property. For each adult who is not your partner, the council needs their name, date of birth, relationship to you, and income. These are your non-dependants, and each one triggers a £5.00 per week deduction from your CTR (unless you receive PIP daily living or DLA care, which waives the deduction entirely).

For dependent children, the form asks for their names, dates of birth, and whether you receive Child Benefit for them.

Income and benefits. This is the section where most mistakes happen. The form asks for weekly income, but Universal Credit is paid monthly. Convert your monthly UC payment to weekly by multiplying by 12 and dividing by 52.

List every source of income: UC standard allowance, UC child elements, earnings, pensions, other benefits. PIP, DLA, Attendance Allowance, and Child Benefit are disregarded — but still declare them on the form. The council needs the full picture to calculate your award correctly.

Savings and capital. Declare all bank accounts, building society accounts, ISAs, premium bonds, and any other savings. Capital above £16,000 disqualifies you from standard CTR. Capital between £6,000 and £16,000 attracts tariff income (£1 per week for every £250 or part thereof above £6,000).

Housing costs. If you are also applying for Housing Benefit, enter your rent details. If you are not applying for Housing Benefit, answer the owner-occupier questions as the form instructs.

Submitting Evidence

After you submit the form, you have one calendar month to provide supporting evidence. You can upload documents during the form submission or email them separately to [email protected].

Dudley accepts smartphone photos of documents, but make sure:

• All four corners of the document are visible
• Text and figures are legible (no blur, no shadow)
• Bank statements show the account holder name, sort code, and account number
• UC statements show the full assessment period breakdown, not just the payment summary

If the council cannot read your documents, they will ask you to resubmit — and if the one-month evidence window passes without complete documentation, your claim may be refused.

Common Mistakes That Delay Claims

• Declaring only the UC payment amount, not the breakdown. The council needs to see each element (standard allowance, housing element, child elements, limited capability element) separately, because some elements are disregarded and others are not.
• Missing a bank account. If you have a savings account you rarely use, declare it anyway. Dudley uses data-matching for some reviews; if a review identifies capital that was not declared, it can lead to a reassessment and recovery.
• Not reporting non-dependants. Every adult in your household who is not your partner must be listed, even if they pay you nothing toward the bills.

What Happens After You Submit

Processing time depends on the claim and the evidence provided. Once processed, you receive a written decision notice and a revised council tax bill showing the reduction applied to your account.

If you disagree with the decision, you have one calendar month from the date on the notice to request a reconsideration. The full claims and appeals process is covered in the Dudley Council Tax Reduction guide.

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