Council Tax Appeals

Council Tax Appeals

Where you have received a new or revised Council Tax bill, and you don’t agree with this decision, you can appeal directly to the revenues team. You must submit an appeal within 2 months of the date stated on your bill. 

To submit your appeal please contact us via email at counciltax@milton-keynes.gov.uk, referencing your council tax account number and the details of the decision you wish to appeal. 

Your appeal will be reviewed, and you will be notified of our final decision. If you are unhappy with the final decision, you can then appeal to the Valuation Tribunal Service.

If our decision was made because you had not provided the information that had been requested from you then you must provide this information first before we can consider changing any decision. 

If you wish to appeal a decision made by the Benefits team about your Council Tax Reduction or Housing Benefit, then please go to our Appeals page on our website for more information on how to do this.

You must continue to pay your Council Tax charge pending the result of any Appeal.

 

What decisions can I appeal?

You can appeal any decision relating to:

  • Liability (for example your name should not be on the bill or the dates you have been billed for are incorrect) 
  • Discounts & Exemptions (for example Single person discount, student discount, etc).
  • Applying a premium or to refusal of a premium exception 
  • Reductions for disabilities (for example disabled band reduction)
  • Penalty Notices

The valuation tribunal can’t hear appeals about:

  • why you haven’t paid your Council Tax 
  • the premium amounts Milton Keynes City Council have set for second homes or long-term empty homes

Time limits

You must submit your initial appeal within 2 months of the date stated on your bill. 

We have two months to consider your appeal. If we don't respond within this time, appeal directly to the Valuation Tribunal within a further two months. If you disagree with our decision, appeal to the Tribunal within 2 months of our response.

You must appeal within 4 months from the date you first contacted the council.

Valuation tribunal, hearings and the decision

To appeal our decision with the Valuation Tribunal, please complete their online application available on their website. The tribunal service is impartial, independent, and free to use.

Please note that the tribunal service cannot award any costs. 

If your case is accepted, you will then be expected to attend an appeal hearing to present your case to the Valuation Tribunal, who will make the final decision.

The panel will make its decision on the evidence and arguments, bearing in mind what the law (legislation and case law) allows. A ‘decision notice’ will then be issued within 1 month of the hearing.

If you remain unsatisfied with the decision, you can appeal to the high court on a point of law. Information on this process will be provided in the decision notice.

For more details, please visit the Valuation Tribunal Website 

Council Tax banding appeals

For appeals against the banding of your property, you should make contact directly with the Valuation Office Agency. 

You can learn more about challenging your band at Challenge your Council Tax band on GOV.UK.

Council Tax contact information

Revenues Service, PO Box 5327, Civic, 1 Saxon Gate East, Central Milton Keynes MK9 3EJ