Council Tax Collection Statistics, 2022-23

Scotland’s Chief Statistician today released the latest Council Tax Collection Statistics which provide council tax collection figures for Scottish local authorities, up to and including the financial year 2022-23.

In 2022-23 for Scotland as a whole, the total amount of council tax billed (after Council Tax Reduction) was £2.837 billion. Of this total, £2.728 billion, or 96.2 per cent, was collected by 31 March 2023. This provisional in-year collection rate is higher than the figure for the previous year (95.7 per cent).    

Provisional in-year council tax collection rates for 2022-23 ranged from 92.7 per cent to 98.4 per cent across the 32 local authorities.

In-year collection rates have improved steadily since 1998-99 and had levelled off at around 96.0 per cent, which reflects improvements in the collection of council tax in the billing year. The collection rates since 2020-21 have been lower, at 94.8 per cent in 2020-21 and 95.7 per cent in 2021-22, due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The 2022-23 rate of 96.2 per cent is now slightly higher than pre-pandemic collection rates.

Council tax collection figures for 2022-23 will reflect the Cost of Living payments, administered by local authorities on behalf of the Scottish Government. Eligible households for these £150 payments included those in receipt of a Council Tax Reduction or in council tax bands A-D and were usually paid as a credit to council tax accounts, meaning the funds could be used towards payment of council tax and/or water and sewerage charges.

Background

The full statistical publication is available online. It contains figures on council tax, covering the financial years 1999-00 to 2022-23.

The information published is used by the Scottish Government to monitor councils' collection levels relating to council tax. Information is collected relating to the amounts billed and received and the year to which the payment refers.  This information is also required by ONS for national accounts purposes and CIPFA.

The next annual publication for financial year 2023-24 will be published in June 2024.  

Further information on Council Tax Collection statistics, including previous publications can be accessed online.

Official statistics are produced by professionally independent statistical staff – more information on the standards of official statistics in Scotland can be accessed online.