Empty homes

When a home becomes unoccupied and unfurnished, it will be exempt for seven days. This means you will not need to pay council tax for this period. After seven days the liable person will be charged the full amount of council tax. This is unless there are other reductions in place.

After two years of the home being empty an additional premium is charged. From 1 April 2025 the additional premium will be charged after a year of being empty.

If you buy or rent a property which is already unfurnished it is likely the exemption has already been awarded and expired. The exemption cannot be awarded again just because the liable person has changed.

Visit our council tax reductions page for more details of the reductions available. You must complete our online form to report your move to get the exemption.

When a home has been empty and unfurnished for one year, an extra premium is paid on top of the council tax. The amount of the premium increases, the longer the property is empty and unfurnished. The amount of the premium will depend on when the property first became empty and unoccupied.

The empty homes premium does not apply to:

• annexes used as part of the main house
• properties where the resident is asked to live elsewhere by the Ministry of Defence

In these circumstances, a full charge is due. If you buy a property which has been empty for one year, this premium will apply straightaway. It will apply until you occupy the property. It will continue to apply if you are refurbishing the property before you or a tenant move in. 

The table below sets out the premium that we will add to your council tax bill:

Exception to the premium

• Properties where probate has recently been granted- After probate the property can be exempt for up to six months. At the expiry of the exemption the property will have an exception from the premium for a further 6 months.
• Properties being actively marketed for sale or let - A 12 month exception to the  premium applies to properties that are actively marketed for sale or let. The exception would run from when the exception first applies until the end of the exception period or until the property is no longer actively marketed, sold, or let (whichever is sooner). 
• Annexes being used as part of the main home-An exception to the premium for annexes which form part of a single property which includes at least one other property. The exception will not apply to annexes where they are not being used as part of the main residence.  
• Armed forces accommodation- The premium does not apply to your second home where you have been provided with armed forces
• Property undergoing major repair work- The premium does not apply where the empty property is undergoing major work to make it habitable, or structural alterations, and the major work was completed less than 6 months ago. This exception is for a period of up to 12 months. This exception can be re-awarded following a sale of the property, if the criteria is met again.

If you qualify for an exception this will limit your council tax charge to a full charge, which must still be paid. However, the additional premium will not be added to your account for the period of the exception. After the except expires you will be charged the appropriate premium as shown in the table above.

Apply to an exception to an empty homes premium (Word doc, 14 KB) 

The completed forms must be sent to ctax@guildford.gov.uk.

For details on the charges for second homes (no-ones main home which is furnished) see our Second Homes page.

If we have billed you for an empty home and it is no longer empty (i.e. someone has moved in, you have sold it or any other change) let us know.

For details of exemptions and other discounts, see council tax discounts and reductions. 

Incentives are available to owners of long term empty homes, to help them bring the property back into use:

• home improvement grants (subject to eligibility and conditions relating to rent levels and nomination rights)
• home trust loan scheme (opens new window) (subject to eligibility, without the conditions above)
• advice on letting properties on assured shorthold tenancies
• surveying services to assist in organising works
• assistance to access a reduced rate of VAT for properties empty over two years. Or an exemption if property is empty for more than 10 years

When a property has not been lived in for two years or more, the council can apply for an Empty Dwelling Management Order (EDMO). We do this if it is clear that the owner has no plans to bring the property back into use.

If we get the order, we can take over the running of the property and bring it back into use, using the powers of the order. We will try to work with property owners to assist them to bring the property back into use, before considering formal enforcement action.