Local Government (Scotland) Act 2003 regulations to increase Council Tax on second homes: FOI Review

Information requested

Original request 202500479898

QUESTION 1: What is the provision and specific wording of section 33(1) and (2) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 2003 which authorises the making of Regulations to impose an increase in Council Tax liability for "second homes"?

QUESTION 2: Do local authorities have a discretionary power to charge different amounts of Council Tax for "second homes" (a) in different parts of their local area and/or (b) for different property circumstances? If the answer is "yes" to (a) and/or (b) where is the statutory authority and/or Scottish Government guidance for the discretion to be found?

Response

I have now completed my review of our response to your request under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) for:

What is the provision and specific wording of section 33(1) and (2) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 2003 which authorises the making of Regulations to impose an increase in Council Tax liability for “second homes”?

Can I ask you please to let me know what specific wording authorises the making of Regulations to impose an increase in Council Tax liability for "second homes" as opposed to "unoccupied dwellings"? After reproducing section 33(1) and (2) of the Act, the response states: "These provisions enable the Scottish Ministers to legislate for increased Council Tax liability for unoccupied dwellings, including second homes, ..." but no statutory provision or other authority for including "second homes" within the meaning of "unoccupied dwellings" (if this is what is meant) is referenced.

I have concluded that the original decision should be confirmed. The original response highlighted that Section 33(1) and (2) of the Local Government in Scotland Act 2003 (as amended) provide the statutory authority for Scottish Ministers to make regulations concerning Council Tax for unoccupied dwellings.

Further to this - and in response to your request to review our original response - I can confirm that the Council Tax (Variation for Unoccupied Dwellings) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2023 enables local authorities to charge a second homes Council Tax premium of up to 100%. Specifically, this amended regulation 6 at paragraph 3 to include explicit reference to second homes. For this purpose, the definition of a second home remains accommodation that is not someone's sole or main residence but is lived in for 25 days or more in the Council Tax charging period and must be furnished according to the definition in the regulations.

Full guidance is available on the Scottish Government website here: Supporting documents - Local government finance circular 6/2024: council tax on second and long-term unoccupied homes guidance - gov.scot

About FOI

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