Council Tax is a system of local taxation collected by local authorities. It is used by councils to raise money for services in the area such as schools, housing, street lighting and cleaning, refuse collection, social services, libraries and meals on wheels, for example. The tax is based upon the property and the personal circumstances of the person occupying the property.

Braintree Council collects Council Tax on behalf of a number of local authorities including Essex County Council, Essex Police Authority, Essex Fire and Rescue,
Halstead Town Council, Witham Town Council and over 60 Parish Councils. The money collected is used to pay for the services provided by each of these authorities.
The amount you pay, along with a lot of other useful information is shown in the Council Tax leaflet sent to every household at the beginning of the financial year. 

- Click here for the 2012-2013 leaflet.

- Click here for the 2011-2012 leaflet.

Billing

Please note the bills for 2012/13 will be issued on 14th March 2012.

You are sent one bill for every financial year (1st April - 31st March).  It shows the amount due less any reductions for discounts, exemptions or Council Tax Benefit.  It shows the instalments that must be paid and the method of payment.
In a full year the Council must offer ten instalments. If you become liable after 1st April you will be billed from the date that your liability starts until the end of the financial year and the number of instalments offered will be the number of full months left in the financial year, less one.

E-Billing

Braintree District Council can now issue your Council Tax or Business Rate bill electronically, rather than by post.

If you choose to have this service, your bill will be issued as a pdf attachment in an email sent to the email address provided by you. You will be helping the Council to save money and therefore you, as a taxpayer.

Please note that bills can currently be opened using Adobe Acrobat version 6 or lower.
If you have any questions about this service or need help, please telephone us on 01376 557722

Please note that all other notices and legal documents, i.e. reminders, final notices or summonses, will be continued to be issued in paper format.

You must submit a separate online form for each bill that you require to be sent to you via email.
Once this request has been processed an electronic bill will be issued to you to confirm that your email address has been added to our records. All future Council Tax and Business Rates bills will be sent to you in electronic format.
Please note, it is your responsibility to access and read all the Council Tax or Business Rates leaflets that explain how your Council Tax and Business Rates has been worked out and where it has been spent. The leaflet can be found by clicking here.
You will be reminded where to access the leaflets every time we send you a bill.

By submitting a request for this service, you are agreeing to notify the Council in writing if:
Your email address changes You no longer have internet access You no longer want this service

The Council reserves the right to withdraw this arrangement with immediate effect if we consider that this facility is being misused or mismanaged. You will be notified in writing if the facility has been withdrawn.

The bills are issued in accordance with Section 233 Local Government Act 1972, The Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992 (S.I. 1992/613) and The Council Tax and Non-Domestic Rating (Electronic Communications) (England) Order 2003 (S.I. 2003/2604). They are treated as 'given, served or supplied by sending the notice or information to that person by electronic communication to such address as may be notified by that person for that purpose'. Braintree District Council is the data controller for the purposes of the Data Protection Act 1998. The information you provide will only be used by the Council to assist in the administration of Council Tax and will not be disclosed to a third party.

- If you wish to receive your Council Tax or Business Rate bills by this method, please click here to complete an on-line request form

Non or Late Payment

Instalments must be paid on the date specified.  Late payment will result in Recovery action.  If you have a query about your bill, you must pay your instalments until the query is resolved and a revised bill is sent to you.  If you are unhappy with Council services you must still pay your bill. If you have a complaint against a particular Council service, this does not give you the right to withhold all or part payment. 

For further information on Recovery of Council Tax please see the Recovery page.

The Recovery Section can be contacted by telephoning 01376 557722 or by email at payadvice@braintree.gov.uk.