You are counted as a student for Council Tax purposes if you are:
- under 20 years old and in part-time or full-time education
- undertaking a full-time course at a college or university in the UK (including universities within the European Union, or worldwide under the Turing or Erasmus+ programmes)
- a foreign language assistant registered with the British Council's Education and Training Group and working at a school or other educational establishment
What counts as a full-time courses for Council Tax purposes
For Council Tax purposes, a full-time course is one that:
- lasts at least one academic year, or one calendar year if the establishment does not have academic years
- normally requires 24 weeks or more of study in each academic or calendar year
- involves an average of at least 21 hours a week of study, tuition or work experience (or a combination of these)
Which courses do not qualify
These types of courses do not qualify:
- day release courses
- block release courses
- part time and evening courses which do not meet the minimum requirement of 21 hours of study per week
English language courses in schools
English language courses in schools in Oxford do not meet the criteria of a qualifying course for Council Tax purposes.
This is because these courses are:
- typically not long enough to qualify under the student criteria
- usually for students under 18 years of age who are not liable to pay council tax
