The Council Tax Benefit Regulations 2006

PART 7 Changes of circumstances and increases for exceptional circumstances

Date on which entitlement is to begin

64.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), any person to whom or in respect of whom a claim for council tax benefit is made and who is otherwise entitled to that benefit shall be so entitled from the benefit week following the date on which that claim is made or is treated as made.

(2) Where a person is otherwise entitled to council tax benefit and becomes liable for the first time for a relevant authority's council tax in respect of a dwelling of which he is a resident in the benefit week in which his claim is made or is treated as made, he shall be so entitled from that benefit week.

Date on which council tax benefit is to end

65.  A claimant's entitlement to council tax benefit shall cease at the end of the benefit week in which entitlement to income support or income-based jobseeker's allowance ceases where—

(a) the claimant or his partner was entitled to and in receipt of income support or an income-based jobseeker's allowance or that claimant and his partner were entitled to and in receipt of a joint-claim jobseeker's allowance and that entitlement has ceased;

(b) that entitlement to income support or income-based jobseeker's allowance has ceased by reason of the claimant or his partner—

(i) commencing employment as an employed or self-employed earner; or

(ii) increasing their earnings from such employment; or

(iii) increasing the number of hours worked in such employment;

(c) the claimant had been entitled to and in receipt of income support or jobseeker's allowance for a continuous period of at least 26 weeks before the day on which his entitlement to income support or income-based jobseeker's allowance ceased and for the purposes of this sub-paragraph—

(i) a claimant satisfies the conditions of this sub-paragraph if he has been entitled to and in receipt of a combination of income support and a jobseeker's allowance for at least 26 weeks;

(ii) the claimant shall be treated as having been entitled to and in receipt of income support or a jobseeker's allowance during any period of less than 5 weeks in respect of which he was not entitled to either of those because, as a consequence of his participation in an employment zone programme, he was engaged in remunerative work;

(iii) references to the claimant include references to his partner;

(iv) a reference to the claimant being entitled to and in receipt of a jobseeker's allowance shall include a reference to the claimant and his partner being entitled to and in receipt of a joint-claim jobseeker's allowance; and

(d) that work, increase in earnings or, as the case may be, increase in hours is expected to last at least 5 weeks or more.

Date on which council tax benefit is to end where entitlement to severe disablement allowance or incapacity benefit ceases

66.  A claimant's entitlement to council tax benefit shall cease at the end of the benefit week in which entitlement to severe disablement allowance or incapacity benefit ceases where—

(a) the claimant or his partner was not entitled to and in receipt of income support but was entitled to and in receipt of severe disablement allowance or incapacity benefit and that entitlement has ceased;

(b) that entitlement to severe disablement allowance or incapacity benefit has ceased by reason of the claimant or his partner—

(i) commencing employment as an employed or self-employed earner; or

(ii) increasing their earnings from such employment; or

(iii) increasing the number of hours worked in such employment;

(c) the claimant had been entitled to and in receipt of severe disablement allowance or incapacity benefit for a continuous period of at least 26 weeks before the day on which his entitlement to severe disablement allowance or incapacity benefit ceased, and for the purposes of this sub-paragraph—

(i) a claimant satisfies the conditions of this sub-paragraph if he has been entitled to and in receipt of a combination of severe disablement allowance and incapacity benefit for at least 26 weeks;

(ii) references to the claimant include references to his partner; and

(d) that work, increase in earnings, or as the case may be, increase in hours is expected to last at least 5 weeks or more.

Date on which change of circumstances is to take effect

67.—(1) Except in cases where regulation 24 (disregard of changes in tax, contributions, etc), or regulation 8(3) of the Decisions and Appeals Regulations M1 , applies and subject to the following provisions of this regulation, a change of circumstances which affects entitlement to, or the amount of, council tax benefit (“change of circumstances”), shall take effect from the first day of the benefit week following the date on which the change actually occurs, and where that change is cessation of entitlement to any benefit under the benefit Acts, the date on which the change actually occurs shall be the day immediately following the last day of entitlement to that benefit.

(2) Subject to paragraph (3), where the change of circumstances is a change in the amount of council tax payable, it shall take effect from the day on which it actually occurs.

(3) Where the change of circumstances is a change in the amount a person is liable to pay in respect of council tax in consequence of regulations under section 13 or 80 of the 1992 Act M2 (reduced amounts of council tax) or changes in the discount to which a dwelling may be subject under sections 11, 12 or 79 of that Act M3 , it shall take effect from the day on which the change in amount has effect.

(4) Where the change of circumstances is an amendment to these Regulations, it shall take effect from the date on which the amendment to these Regulations comes into force.

(5) Where the change of circumstances is the claimant's acquisition of a partner, the change shall have effect on the day on which the acquisition takes place.

(6) Where the change of circumstances is the death of a claimant's partner or their separation, it shall have effect on the day the death or separation occurs.

(7) If two or more changes of circumstances occurring in the same benefit week would, but for this paragraph, take effect in different benefit weeks in accordance with paragraphs (1) to (6) they shall take effect from the day to which the appropriate paragraph from (2) to (6) above refers, or, where more than one day is concerned, from the earlier day.

(8) Where the change of circumstances is that income, or an increase in the amount of income, other than a benefit or an increase in the amount of a benefit under the Act, is paid in respect of a past period and there was no entitlement to income of that amount during that period, the change of circumstances shall take effect from the first day on which such income, had it been paid in that period at intervals appropriate to that income, would have fallen to be taken into account for the purposes of these Regulations.

(9) Without prejudice to paragraph (8), where the change of circumstances is the payment of income, or arrears of income, in respect of a past period, the change of circumstances shall take effect from the first day on which such income, had it been timeously paid in that period at intervals appropriate to that income, would have fallen to be taken into account for the purposes of these Regulations.

Marginal Citations

M1 Amended by S.I. 2003/325.

M2 Section 13 was amended by the Local Government Act 2003 (c. 26), section 127 and Schedule 7, paragraph 42; section 80 by the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, section 180 and Schedule 13, paragraph 176(4).

M3 Section 11 was amended by the Local Government Act 2003 (c. 26), section 127 and Schedule 7, paragraph 41; section 12 was substituted by the Local Government Act 2003, section 75(2); section 79 was amended by S.S.I. 2005/51, regulation 2.