Council Tax Non Payement- Effect on British Naturalisation

[Xzibit1]

Hi,
I am due to apply for British Naturalisation in July 2007 and have the following queries:

1. For up to one year I was staying in a student house and yet I was a full time working professional. Since I was in professional in a student house, I had to pay council tax, but didnot bother to contact the council and tell them my status. So for almost a year I evaded paying council tax. I note on the Naturalisation form you have to list all your previous 5 addresses. I worry that the Home Office may check on the addresses with the council and may be discover I didnot pay council tax.
1. Will this affect my application?
2. Should I contact the council and send them a backdated payement?

Thanks
Xzibit

[Wanderer]

Hi,
I am due to apply for British Naturalisation in July 2007 and have the following queries:

1. For up to one year I was staying in a student house and yet I was a full time working professional. Since I was in professional in a student house, I had to pay council tax, but didnot bother to contact the council and tell them my status. So for almost a year I evaded paying council tax. I note on the Naturalisation form you have to list all your previous 5 addresses. I worry that the Home Office may check on the addresses with the council and may be discover I didnot pay council tax.
1. Will this affect my application?
2. Should I contact the council and send them a backdated payement?

Thanks
Xzibit

I'd sort this out ASAP mate as ISTR council tax is one of the few debts you can be jailed for - ie is a criminal offence.

Check it out tho - my info may be old or flawed, this was from my Law days.

[Papafaith]

Xzibit1, you need to sort it out fast, you will be denied citizenship and tried for this. My first year here i rented a studio that unknowingly to me was not registered by the landlord for council purposes, so the council did not know a flat was there. After 6 months i started running into problems about my credit checks. Paid for my credit report from Equifax and found out in my records that i was not paying council tax, meanwhile i got an all inclusive deal on rent +council tax + electricity bills per month. Contacted the council tax section and complained, they said there was no such flat in their records, started to pursue them through emails(So i will have a record of all this) finally after another 3 months they sent an inspector to inspect the apartment and found a flat was actually there, they checked the band and my bill was about £700, they wrote me because of my efforts i was allowed to pay this off installmentally, and i paid it off in 18months. Some landlords are just plain crooks, but when the chips are down it you who bears the burden.
I got a letter of commedation and the landlord was sanctioned.
On naturalization they would carry out a check on all where you have lived and it would come to light.
Make arrangement with the affected council to pay it off, or at least arrange an instalmental payment.

[Dawie]

I wouldn't worry about it at all. If you have not been charged or convicted for non-payment of council tax then there is no problem.

[Papafaith]

Dawie, what if during checks, it was found out that during the period in question he was actually a professional? Am doing a Masters presently, called the council for even a student rebate but they refused as they had my previous record of being a professional.

[SYH]

so far xzbit, knows he should have paid council tax but it doesnt sound like the council knows it. Thus, if the council hans't demanded it, then you haven't evaded, you were just sneaky. And I can't see how the HO is going to call you on it.
as for Papafaith I dont really understand. How can your credit be impacted for not paying council tax. if the council, itself didn't know about it either. Not everyone has to pay council tax. And for it to adversely affect your credit, seems to me that someone has to complain that you didn't pay it. As it wasn't the council, it doesnt make sense it was on your credit report.

[Papafaith]

SYH, it may not make sense to you, the report had no record of domestic bills it was stated as such, dont forget i was paying my electricity, gas and supposedly council tax together with my rent, it was my first home.
It is a civic responsility to notify your council when you move into a new house/apartment, if you dont how would you be served demand notice in your name, when you were not in a shared apartment.
That the polibility of HO detecting is slim does not mean that the posibility is not there.
In anycase, if we who are supposed to be "Highly Skilled" and law abiding begin to be sneaky concerning civic responsibilties then what is the diference between us and illegals/ordinary citizens who do such?
According to the xzibit1, it is glaring that the non payment was deliberate, if not how come the sudden concern when its time to naturalize.
Am not preaching morals here, but simply saying the chances for HO detecting is there.
Dont forget the law only exempts full time students will only 20hrs of work(Max) a week.

[SYH]

ok well that makes sense, you were an owner, so somebody has to pay it, and as you put it, owners have the responsibility. although again, not sure how the credit report had it but not the council.
Sorry you didn't exactly say owner but you were paying these other bills. I normally rent where every thing is included. The one time it wasn't, I was surprised to find I had to pay council tax and I spoke to the council and based on the contract they told me I wasn't responsible for council tax. And I reported this info to the owner who disputed what I agreed to in the lease so we agreed that I would stay just one month and find another place. She took her time to return my deposit but I think if the contract says you dont pay it or its included, then you are not responsible.
xzbit is a renter so again I think if he is not asked for the council tax, he is not responsible for it.
I do not condone that he is playing dumb.
And yeah now his guilty conscience has brought this issue up so its up to him to decide if its worth the risk, I think its highly unlikely that it will come back to haunt him, although it clearly haunts him on another level

[ashishashah]

Hi,

Even in my case (a Studio flat) i dont pay the Council Tax..My Landlord pay that..I pay my rent which incluses Council+Water tax.

So how do i make sure that my Landlord is really paying the council tax for my studio?(actually it is one big house which has been converted in to 3 studios)..

Thanks
Ashish

[Papafaith]

I can bet that the council (Planning Dept) are not aware that such modifications has taken place, so the entire house (As one) may stilll be in his name for council purposes. So he charges all three studios separately.

[Christophe]

I can bet that the council (Planning Dept) are not aware that such modifications has taken place, so the entire house (As one) may stilll be in his name for council purposes. So he charges all three studios separately.

Possibly, but that's a different point really. In fact, there are many people who, completely legitimately, do not pay council tax in their own name because someone else in the house or flat (the owner, perhaps, or the "senior" tenant) pays it. What private arrangements (if any) the occupants of the dwelling arrive at to reimburse the person who pays the tax is up to them and is no business of the council's or anyone else's. (Of couse, the original poster masqueraded as a student when in reality that was not so, and therefore not all cases are quite as simple as I've made out either!)

[jjustyy]

It's already been said, but I wouldn't worry about the Council Tax. The house was recorded as tax exempt due to it being occupied by students. It's not like the house was occupied and Council Tax payments were being avoided.

[global gypsy]

Does this also apply to TV license? I mean, will they come after you if you haven't paid your TV tax?

[JAJ]

Does this also apply to TV license? I mean, will they come after you if you haven't paid your TV tax?

I find it curious that persons aspire to become British citizens but don't accept the responsibility to pay their taxes.

[SYH]

aspiration doesn't make anyone more ethical. people who are already citizens of what ever country they are from, all around the world avoid their taxes too, should their nationality be revoked?

[Papafaith]

aspiration doesn't make anyone more ethical. people who are already citizens of what ever country they are from, all around the world avoid their taxes too, should their nationality be revoked?

That is why they are sent to jail when caught.

[SYH]

my point is that citiizens do it, so he shouldn't be any less qualified to become a citizen if he does it.
whether they go to jail or not is not probative

[Papafaith]

HO use anything to avoid giving citizenship, i have a friend whose car insurance expired, the day after he was caught by police, when she was due for naturilisation, HO said in a letter that she did not show any trait of one who would be a good citizen, she was asked to reapply after two years. If any such offence surfaces in that time she would be denied citizensip. Next year would make the second year.
So its important in light of what we are aiming for.

[SYH]

no papafaith I am responding to JAJ's moral outrage of xzbit's desire to be naturalized, not whehter it could impact his application.

It might or might not, that is clearly a debate on this thread since many feel if he has not been invoiced, he hasn't officially evaded.
clearly the person either mentionned her arrest on her application or as it was documented the HO could detect her arrest.
Since it isnot documented as an outstanding payment, it would hard for home office to use it against you in the process unless he told him so.

[Papafaith]

I agree with you SYH.

[UKbound]

Papafaith - I agree with you. If we want to become upstanding citizens, we should follow the rules. If we get in trouble when we get caught, then we can't really complain about it.

In this case, I'd rectify the council tax situation before someone else figures it out. He might get away with it, but then again, he might not. Is 700 or 800 pounds worth it? I'd say no.

[JAJ]

aspiration doesn't make anyone more ethical. people who are already citizens of what ever country they are from, all around the world avoid their taxes too, should their nationality be revoked?

No, they should be (and are) punished through the proper channels. But we have enough tax-evading British citizens already - we don't need any more, thank you.

It is interesting to observe that tales of immigrants refusing to meet their civic obligations are clearly not just a tabloid fantasy.

Evasion of Council Tax is a bar to naturalisation, per section 4.6 of this document:
http://www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk/docume ... iew=Binary

As for TV Licence, non-payment may lead to action in the criminal courts and would also affect whether someone meets the good character requirement.

[Papafaith]

Jaj, good proof you provided here. Thanks.

[global gypsy]

My question on TV licence was purely academic: I don't own a TV, so don't need to pay any TV tax.

I find the UK TV licence quite an anachronistic system. Several other countries have done away with this tax years ago. I am surprised the UK populace haven't protested against it all these years...

[Xzibit1]

Members..Thanks. I have arranged to rectify my council tax issue. I realise one can run but one cannot hide from the long arm of the law!
Xzibit