Guide What happens if you don't pay your Council Tax?

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3. Challenges to Council Tax legislation from individuals and groups such as Freedom of the Land

Some people believe that they are only bound by the contracts and laws they have consented to. However, contract law and alleged rights under common law are not the same as legislation relating to the administration and collection of Council Tax.
You do not have a choice as to whether you are liable for Council Tax even if you are part of one of these groups.

In the UK, liability for Council Tax is determined by the Local Government Finance Act 1992. This statute was created by a democratically elected Parliament of the United Kingdom, which has received the assent of the Crown and subsequent statutory regulations, sets out a local authority's rights to demand Council Tax to fund services and who is liable to pay.
Your liability for Council Tax is not dependent on, and does not require, your consent or the existence of a contractual relationship with the council. Any assertion to the contrary is incorrect and there is no legal basis upon which to make this argument.

Council Tax legislation

The legislation that covers Council Tax is available from the government website, including:
Local Government Finance Act 1992
Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992
Council Tax (Demand Notices) (England) Regulations 2011

Some residents have asked whether Acts and Statutes are an obligation on them, and about the difference between a Statute and Law and other similar questions regarding legal matters.
Acts of Parliaments are Statutes which set out the law. If you have questions regarding other Acts of Parliament or laws, these should be directed to a legal professional, not the council.

Sometimes people think that using an irrelevant law means they don't have to pay Council Tax. There are many misleading articles and templates regarding the legality of Council Tax. Anyone relying on these should exercise caution and seek proper legal advice before using them as a defence against Council Tax liability.

Whilst we do our best to answer all relevant enquiries about Council Tax, we reserve the right to refuse to respond to lengthy spurious enquiries that focus on hypothetical arguments that have no basis in statute but which use our resources at the expense of other taxpayers.