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Second home council tax

Second homes pay council tax, with no single person discount. Councils can now add a premium on top: up to 100% extra in England (since April 2025), up to 300% in Wales, and in Scotland a default 100% with no upper limit since April 2026.

Checked against official sources on 27 October 2026. Independent guide; your council decides your bill.

England

Since 1 April 2025 councils can charge up to 100% extra, so up to double the normal bill, on a furnished home where nobody lives as their main home. A council has to decide at least a year before the premium starts. Some homes can't be charged the premium:

  • homes being actively marketed for sale or let (for up to 12 months)
  • homes in probate (for 12 months after probate is granted)
  • annexes that are part of the main home
  • homes of people living in armed forces accommodation for their job
  • job-related homes, occupied caravan pitches and boat moorings
  • seasonal homes that planning rules stop anyone living in all year, or that can only be used as holiday homes

Wales

Welsh councils can charge up to 300% extra on second homes, and have been able to since April 2023. Several do so in areas with many holiday homes. Since April 2026 the premium is added first and any discount taken off afterwards. A self-catering holiday let pays business rates instead only if it is available to let for at least 252 days a year and actually let for at least 182.

Scotland

From 1 April 2024 Scottish councils could double the bill on second homes. Since 1 April 2026 the default is a 100% increase and there's no upper limit: councils can set a higher or lower rate, or none. In 2026/27, for example, Glasgow, Highland, East Dunbartonshire and West Dunbartonshire charge 200%. Water and sewerage charges are paid in full on second homes, with no premium on them.

The highest second-home premium we've confirmed for 2026/27 is 200% in Aberdeenshire. On a Band D home there, that's £5,058 a year instead of £1,686.

Second-home premiums in England, 2026/27

Second home council tax premium by council, England
CouncilPremiumBand D with premium
Adur100%£5,096.56
Amber ValleyNone£2,407.69
Arun100%£4,974.48
AshfieldNot confirmed–
Ashford100%£4,820.32
Babergh100%£4,683.10
Barking and Dagenham100%£4,397.02
Barnet100%£4,265.20
Barnsley100%£4,651.92
Basildon100%£4,654.48
Basingstoke and Deane100%£4,510.42
BassetlawNone£2,644.95
Bath and North East Somerset100%£4,766.84
Bedford100%£4,943.48
Bexley100%£4,732.72
Birmingham100%£4,725.80
Blaby100%£4,980.44
Blackburn with Darwen100%£4,910.54
Blackpool100%£5,026.44
BolsoverNone£2,559.41
Bolton100%£4,799.48
Boston100%£4,617.46
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole100%£4,871.16
Bracknell Forest100%£4,529.60
Bradford100%£4,721.46
Braintree100%£4,560.68
BrecklandNone£2,443.67
Brent100%£4,470.54
Brentwood100%£4,516.28
Brighton and Hove100%£5,161.08
Bristol100%£5,427.36
BroadlandNot confirmed–
Bromley100%£4,280.08
BromsgroveNone£2,478.65
BroxbourneNot confirmed–
Broxtowe100%£5,236.42
BuckinghamshireNone£2,526.58
BurnleyNone£2,549.42
Bury100%£5,110.30
Calderdale100%£4,840.30
Cambridge100%£4,934.04
Camden100%£4,415.10
Cannock Chase100%£4,751.66
Canterbury100%£4,838.66
Castle PointNot confirmed–
Central Bedfordshire100%£5,032.32
Charnwood100%£4,811.28
Chelmsford100%£4,600.36
Cheltenham100%£4,739.04
CherwellNone£2,582.96
Cheshire East100%£4,909.74
Cheshire West and Chester100%£5,034.66
ChesterfieldNone£2,339.49
Chichester100%£4,939.36
Chorley100%£4,860.46
City of London100%£2,659.12
Colchester100%£4,565.70
Cornwall100%£5,181.86
Cotswold100%£4,783.30
Coventry100%£5,033.44
Crawley100%£4,836.92
Croydon100%£5,199.82
Cumberland100%£5,022.64
DacorumNot confirmed–
Darlington100%£4,987.66
Dartford100%£4,750.30
DerbyNone£2,306.00
Derbyshire Dales100%£4,889.40
Doncaster100%£4,335.50
Dorset100%£5,530.04
Dover100%£4,923.48
Dudley100%£4,289.68
Durham100%£5,244.30
Ealing100%£4,277.06
East Cambridgeshire100%£4,970.36
East Devon100%£5,190.92
East HampshireNone£2,343.92
East HertfordshireNot confirmed–
East Lindsey100%£4,551.76
East Riding of Yorkshire100%£4,932.16
East StaffordshireNot confirmed–
East Suffolk100%£4,669.60
Eastbourne100%£5,308.56
Eastleigh100%£4,684.42
Elmbridge100%£5,115.50
Enfield100%£4,535.34
Epping Forest100%£4,554.42
Epsom and EwellNone£2,530.84
Erewash100%£4,721.28
Exeter100%£4,990.72
Fareham100%£4,541.10
Fenland100%£5,075.48
Folkestone and Hythe100%£5,077.50
Forest of Dean100%£4,886.84
FyldeNone£2,483.94
Gateshead100%£5,431.62
Gedling100%£5,219.10
Gloucester100%£4,711.68
Gosport100%£4,688.58
GraveshamNot confirmed–
Great Yarmouth100%£4,828.82
Greenwich100%£4,215.72
Guildford100%£5,094.60
Hackney100%£4,120.60
Halton100%£4,733.22
Hammersmith and Fulham100%£3,039.02
Harborough100%£4,779.74
Haringey100%£4,627.56
Harlow100%£4,597.38
Harrow100%£5,022.14
HartNone£2,400.02
Hartlepool100%£5,120.40
Hastings100%£5,353.16
Havant100%£4,640.56
Havering100%£4,849.32
Herefordshire100%£5,148.74
Hertsmere100%£4,811.66
High Peak100%£4,769.32
HillingdonYes, rate not published–
Hinckley and BosworthNot confirmed–
Horsham100%£4,882.02
Hounslow100%£4,371.12
Huntingdonshire100%£5,112.80
HyndburnNot confirmed–
Ipswich100%£4,936.50
Isle of Wight100%£5,251.58
Isles of Scilly100%£4,095.92
Islington100%£4,216.30
Kensington and Chelsea100%£3,333.30
King's Lynn and West Norfolk100%£4,860.26
Kingston upon Hull100%£4,590.08
Kingston upon Thames100%£5,218.40
Kirklees100%£4,882.14
Knowsley100%£4,976.50
Lambeth100%£4,094.22
Lancaster100%£5,006.38
Leeds100%£4,567.46
Leicester100%£5,057.50
Lewes100%£5,512.34
Lewisham100%£4,474.66
Lichfield100%£4,703.80
Lincoln100%£4,646.16
Liverpool100%£5,347.18
Luton100%£4,879.86
Maidstone100%£5,005.18
Maldon100%£4,656.74
Malvern Hills100%£4,901.84
Manchester100%£4,624.08
MansfieldNone£2,600.38
Medway100%£4,657.10
Melton100%£4,859.34
Merton100%£4,293.52
Mid Devon100%£5,312.82
Mid Suffolk100%£4,633.76
Mid Sussex100%£4,948.52
MiddlesbroughNone£2,549.16
Milton Keynes100%£4,744.42
Mole Valley100%£5,039.72
New Forest100%£4,839.52
Newark and Sherwood100%£5,364.20
Newcastle upon Tyne100%£5,084.38
Newcastle-under-Lyme100%£4,668.50
Newham100%£3,888.46
North Devon100%£5,284.42
North East DerbyshireNot confirmed–
North East LincolnshireNot confirmed–
North Hertfordshire100%£4,897.04
North Kesteven100%£4,675.62
North LincolnshireNot confirmed–
North Norfolk100%£4,919.86
North NorthamptonshireNone£2,423.96
North Somerset100%£4,982.44
North Tyneside100%£4,923.54
North WarwickshireNone£2,532.10
North West Leicestershire100%£4,836.40
North Yorkshire100%£5,088.68
Northumberland100%£5,193.88
Norwich100%£5,006.88
Nottingham100%£5,510.78
Nuneaton and BedworthNone£2,502.16
Oadby and Wigston100%£4,813.70
Oldham100%£5,204.46
Oxford100%£5,356.80
Pendle100%£5,280.36
Peterborough100%£4,586.94
Plymouth100%£4,883.70
Portsmouth100%£4,583.42
Preston100%£5,151.48
Reading100%£5,225.54
Redbridge100%£4,589.16
Redcar and Cleveland100%£5,088.96
RedditchNone£2,462.95
Reigate and Banstead100%£5,133.22
Ribble ValleyNone£2,386.50
Richmond upon Thames100%£4,972.20
Rochdale100%£5,201.66
Rochford100%£4,726.96
RossendaleNone£2,519.97
Rother100%£5,401.90
Rotherham100%£4,763.06
RugbyNone£2,483.05
RunnymedeNone£2,492.99
Rushcliffe100%£5,286.54
Rushmoor100%£4,640.56
Rutland100%£5,475.16
Salford100%£5,188.90
Sandwell100%£4,488.92
Sefton100%£5,166.44
Sevenoaks100%£5,044.72
Sheffield100%£5,020.32
Shropshire100%£5,056.36
Slough100%£4,828.88
SolihullNone£2,197.26
Somerset100%£5,121.18
South Cambridgeshire100%£5,072.50
South Derbyshire100%£4,679.22
South GloucestershireNot confirmed–
South Hams100%£5,230.44
South Holland100%£4,556.40
South Kesteven100%£4,520.00
South NorfolkNot confirmed–
South OxfordshireNone£2,597.57
South Ribble100%£4,885.32
South Staffordshire100%£4,627.34
South Tyneside100%£4,868.86
Southampton100%£4,762.96
Southend-on-Sea100%£4,530.34
Southwark100%£3,934.52
SpelthorneNone£2,526.44
St AlbansNot confirmed–
St Helens100%£4,806.76
Stafford100%£4,605.36
Staffordshire Moorlands100%£4,676.42
StevenageNone£2,391.97
Stockport100%£5,237.80
Stockton-on-Tees100%£5,179.66
Stoke-on-Trent100%£4,366.24
Stratford-on-AvonNone£2,484.17
Stroud100%£4,982.72
Sunderland100%£4,394.28
Surrey Heath100%£5,170.32
Sutton100%£4,757.28
Swale100%£4,811.30
Swindon100%£4,876.20
Tameside100%£4,894.42
Tamworth100%£4,601.52
TandridgeNone£2,594.85
Teignbridge100%£5,286.24
Telford and Wrekin100%£4,512.52
Tendring100%£4,539.26
Test Valley100%£4,611.04
Tewkesbury100%£4,681.06
Thanet100%£4,981.80
Three RiversNot confirmed–
Thurrock100%£4,509.36
Tonbridge and Malling100%£4,943.66
Torbay100%£4,940.50
Torridge100%£5,202.84
Tower Hamlets100%£3,675.56
Trafford100%£4,583.40
Tunbridge Wells100%£4,892.30
Uttlesford100%£4,667.64
Vale of White HorseNot confirmed–
Wakefield100%£4,593.78
Walsall100%£5,254.96
Waltham Forest100%£4,773.92
Wandsworth100%£2,056.42
Warrington100%£4,895.22
WarwickNone£2,461.55
Watford100%£4,893.40
Waverley100%£5,209.74
Wealden100%£5,456.86
Welwyn Hatfield100%£4,904.52
West Berkshire100%£5,010.74
West Devon100%£5,410.66
West Lancashire100%£4,912.46
West LindseyNone£2,354.25
West Northamptonshire100%£4,973.32
West Oxfordshire100%£5,133.90
West Suffolk100%£4,702.94
Westminster100%£2,099.10
Westmorland and Furness100%£5,015.98
Wigan100%£4,305.36
WiltshireNone£2,571.78
Winchester100%£4,719.52
Windsor and Maidenhead100%£3,905.24
Wirral100%£5,001.18
Woking100%£5,196.08
Wokingham100%£4,995.40
Wolverhampton100%£5,077.98
Worcester100%£4,811.62
Worthing100%£4,912.26
Wychavon100%£4,746.38
WyreNot confirmed–
Wyre ForestNone£2,512.47
York100%£4,574.30

Second-home premiums in Scotland, 2026/27

Second home council tax premium by council, Scotland
CouncilPremiumBand D with premium
Aberdeen100%£3,495.08
Aberdeenshire200%£5,058.12
Angus100%£3,197.30
Argyll and Bute110%£3,744.99
Clackmannanshire100%£3,367.34
Dumfries and Galloway100%£3,157.30
Dundee100%£3,459.38
East Ayrshire100%£3,434.56
East Dunbartonshire200%£5,255.01
East Lothian100%£3,395.24
East Renfrewshire100%£3,240.30
Edinburgh100%£3,252.10
Falkirk100%£3,430.18
Fife100%£3,147.40
Glasgow200%£5,118.00
Highland200%£4,901.97
Inverclyde100%£3,347.70
Midlothian100%£3,632.32
Moray100%£3,462.28
Na h-Eileanan Siar100%£3,011.00
North Ayrshire100%£3,371.68
North Lanarkshire100%£3,109.12
Orkney Islands100%£3,338.14
Perth and Kinross100%£3,347.68
Renfrewshire100%£3,381.12
Scottish Borders125%£3,641.67
Shetland Islands100%£2,975.80
South Ayrshire100%£3,389.92
South Lanarkshire100%£2,936.94
Stirling100%£3,505.74
West Dunbartonshire200%£5,044.59
West Lothian100%£3,255.18

Second-home premiums in Wales, 2026/27

Second home council tax premium by council, Wales
CouncilPremiumBand D with premium
Blaenau Gwent100%£5,062.52
Bridgend100%£4,955.98
Caerphilly100%£4,165.76
Cardiff100%£4,026.36
Carmarthenshire100%£4,702.40
Ceredigion150%£6,048.63
Conwy150%£6,182.05
Denbighshire150%£5,847.58
Flintshire100%£4,752.34
Gwynedd150%£6,171.93
Isle of Anglesey100%£4,521.46
Merthyr Tydfil100%£5,187.20
Monmouthshire100%£4,833.00
Neath Port Talbot100%£5,082.78
Newport100%£4,176.96
Pembrokeshire125%£4,873.84
Powys75%£4,115.51
Rhondda Cynon Taf100%£4,578.86
Swansea100%£4,476.58
TorfaenNone£2,155.68
Vale of Glamorgan100%£4,463.08
Wrexham50%£3,463.32

Premiums from each council's own website or published decisions, checked October 2026. "Not confirmed" means we couldn't confirm the council's 2026/27 decision yet: check with the council.

Questions

Do you pay council tax on a second home?

Yes. A second home is charged council tax like any other home, with no single person discount because nobody lives there as their main home. Many councils now add a premium on top: up to 100% extra in England, up to 300% in Wales, and in Scotland a default of 100% with no upper limit since April 2026.

What is the second home council tax loophole?

People sometimes call it a loophole when a second home is let as holiday accommodation and pays business rates instead of council tax. The tests are strict: in Wales, for example, a holiday let must be available for 252 days and actually let for 182 days a year. Homes that don't meet them pay council tax and any premium. There are also legal exceptions from the premium, such as homes being marketed for sale or let for up to a year.

Which councils charge double council tax on second homes?

295 of the 330 councils whose 2026/27 policy we have confirmed charge a second-home premium. The table below shows every council.

Official sources