Do I Have To Pay Council Tax on a Static Caravan?

Are you considering buying a holiday home, lodge or static caravan? If so, you’ll probably have one-thousand-and-one questions. One of the main questions we get here at Static Trader is “do I have to pay council tax on a static caravan.”

For this reason, we thought we would write a blog post to help clear up this issue. The answer to this question is… it depends! Now I bet your thinking “depends on what”. To this we would say it depends on how you intend on using your static caravan. Below we will try and clear up the different caravan usages and whether you will have to pay council tax for that specific use.

Do I Have To Pay Council Tax on My Static Caravan as a Holiday Home?

The answer in this situation is: NO. You do not pay council tax on the ownership of a home, lodge or static caravan at a holiday park in the UK. As long as the static caravan holiday home isn’t being used as your sole dwellings (also known as a residential holiday home), you won’t be liable to pay council tax on it. Holiday parks are classified as commercial properties, and so they are not subject to council tax.

Additionally, as your static caravan is only a holiday home for you and you already have a home elsewhere that you pay council tax on, means you do not need to pay council tax on your holiday home static caravan. From our experience some holiday parks even require static caravan buyers to prove they pay council tax on their main property before they purchase a static caravan.

So, the rule of thumb here is if you pay council tax on your home, then you do not pay council tax on your holiday home.

Do I Have To Pay Council Tax on My Static Caravan as Sole Residence?

The answer in this situation is: YES. If you are planning to use your static caravan as your sole residence, then you are liable to pay council tax. The Caravans and Houseboats (VAT Notice 701/20) notice states “where a caravan is used as a person’s sole or main residence, it will generally be subject to council tax, for which the resident or owner of the caravan or park home will be liable. Caravans on seasonal or holiday parks will not be subject to council tax (unless used as a person’s sole or main residence)”.

Final Though….

Hopefully that has cleared up the answer to that question of “do I have to pay council tax on a static caravan? The answer is simply “No” if you are using your static caravan as just a holiday home or temporary residence but if you plan to use it as your sole residence then you are liable for council tax.  It’s always best to be informed and stay on the right side of the law.

Please don’t risk not paying your council tax if you are living in your static caravan and think the council will never find out. If you are found to be living in a static caravan, then you could face some serious consequences. Also, if you are living in a static caravan on a holiday park and no paying council tax, the site owner will also be prosecuted and fined. So, it really is not worth risking it!

Looking to Buy a Used or New Static Caravan?

Static Trader has a wide selection of new and used offsite static caravans available for you to buy to us as temporary accommodation on your land including a wide range of static caravan manufacturers. Whether you want a single, double, or lodge style static caravan we have the right unit for you. We also buy caravans so if you wish to upgrade and sell your current range of static caravan, we will be happy to purchase them back from you.

Why not view our current stock of used and new static caravans on our website here – Buy a Caravan – or call us on 01424 774 759 to get more information or to book a viewing. Viewings at our Rye-based static caravan showground are highly recommended. So why not pop down and let us show you around the static caravans models you’re interested in, answering any questions you may have. We stock all the main static caravan brand manufacturers including Atlas Leisure, Willerby, ABI, Pemberton, Carnaby, Swift, and Delta.

Static Trader understands that finding the right static caravan to fit your needs as well as your plot can take up a considerable amount of time. Start a conversation with us early in your search and if you can’t find what you’re looking for from our range of off-site statics for sale, we’ll make every effort to source one for you.

If you need to upgrade what you already have, or you just wish to sell your static caravans you already own, then provide us with the information and we will get back to you with a price – Sell My Caravans