People Living With You
Non Dependants
Non Dependants are people who live with you who are over 18.
This includes adult sons, daughters, and other relatives or friends who live in your home, but not your landlord or joint tenants.
Non dependant deductions reduce the amount of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit you receive, depending on the circumstances of the non dependant. The deductions are set down in law and have to be applied whether or not the adult concerned actually contributes to your household.
When you make a claim for benefit you need to give us proof of the income your non dependant receives. If your non dependant is unemployed and receives state benefits, if we have their written authorisation we can check this information ourselves with the Department for Work and Pensions.
From April 2011 there will be staged increases in the rates of non dependant deductions for both Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit. By April 2014, these increases will bring the rates to the level they would have been had they been fully increased each year since 2001 (when the rates were frozen).
Non Dependant Deductions from April 2011 [pdf document]
Second Adults
Second Adult Rebate is available to people who are liable to pay Council Tax, are not part of a couple, but who have a second adult living them who is on a low income. In general Second Adult Rebate is available to the claimant, who is also the council tax payer, to offset the loss of council tax single person discount, caused by the second adult living in the house.
The maximum amount of Second Adult Rebate that can be awarded is 25% of the council tax liability for the property.
If you are claiming Second Adult Rebate, you only need to give us proof of the income for the second adult on a low income. We don’t need to see proof of your income.
If you would like further information, telephone 01325 388514.