North Kesteven Council Tax 2026/27

Second homes in North Kesteven: from a 10% discount to double in two years

North Kesteven's charge on second homes has changed sharply. From April 2006 to March 2024, a furnished home with no resident paid 90%, a 10% discount. In 2024/25 it paid the full 100%. From 1 April 2025 a 100% premium was added, so it now pays 200%. On a Band B home, the most common band in the district, that means £3,636.59 in 2026/27. At the 90% rate the same home would have paid £1,636.47.

A home your employer provides because your job requires you to live there can get 50% off instead. Examples include a publican who must live above the pub, a school caretaker, or a minister of religion. Both homes must be in England, Scotland or Wales. You cannot claim Council Tax Support on a second property.

Council Tax Support restrictions for working-age residents

North Kesteven and the City of Lincoln run their revenues and benefits service together, so forms and the council tax email address use lincoln.gov.uk. The two councils set different support schemes, though. North Kesteven's 2026/27 scheme has these limits for working-age claimants (people in its protected categories are not subject to the cap or the minimum award):

• Savings over £8,000 mean no support. That is higher than the £6,000 limit in the City of Lincoln's scheme, even though the two councils share a benefits service.
• Support is capped at 90% of your bill, so the most a working-age household in a Band B home can get is £1,636.47, leaving at least £181.83 to pay in 2026/27.
• For Band E and above the cap is 90% of the Band D charge. In 2026/27, that limits support to £2,104.03 a year, even though a Band E bill is £2,857.32.
• Awards below £3.50 a week are not paid, and backdating is limited to one month (since April 2018).
• Self-employed income is assessed as 16 hours at the minimum wage for the first year of trading.
• Care leavers who were in Lincolnshire County Council care as children can get 100% off up to age 25. Inside the support scheme itself, a care leaver under 26 can get up to 100% if they live alone, or 75% if they share with another adult. The council also runs a £25,000 exceptional hardship fund.

Empty homes and paying in North Kesteven

An empty, unfurnished home gets 100% off for its first two months, then the full charge applies. A home undergoing structural alterations or major repairs to make it habitable can get 25% off for up to a year. Long-term empty premiums start after one year, with higher rates after five and ten years. Direct debits can be taken on the 1st, 8th, 15th, 23rd or 28th.

The district council keeps only 8.8% of the average Band D bill (£205.67). The rest goes to Lincolnshire County Council, the Police and Crime Commissioner and parish councils. The council has power to reduce any bill, even to nil, but says this is relatively expensive because it must fund the whole reduction itself, including the county, police and parish shares.