Council Tax Special Payment Arrangements (SPAs)

In short

An SPA is an agreement with your council to pay off council tax arrears in monthly amounts you can afford.
You can ask at any stage, from the first reminder to after the bailiffs have been. The earlier you ask, the less it costs.
It is free, it is not a formal insolvency, and it does not go on your credit file.
Your offer must cover this year's bill as well as the arrears, or it will fail.
A council does not have to agree, but most will accept an offer that is realistic and backed by your figures.

A special payment arrangement is an agreement between you and your council to pay off council tax arrears over time. Councils use different names for it, such as a payment plan or a special arrangement, but they all mean the same thing: you pay an agreed amount each month, and the council stops taking further action while you keep to it.

It is not a formal insolvency procedure. Nothing is registered anywhere, it costs nothing to set up, it does not appear on your credit file, and it can be changed if your circumstances change.

For most people with council tax arrears, it is the right answer. The formal options, such as a Debt Relief Order or bankruptcy, are for when council tax is one of several debts you have no realistic way to pay.

£0 to set one up
Any stage from reminder to bailiffs
No credit file entry
1 bill the current year must be covered too

Why an SPA is worth having

Council tax is a priority debt. Unlike a credit card, the council can recover it without going back to court each time, once it has a liability order. It can take money from your wages or benefits, send enforcement agents whose fees are added to what you owe, and in England, in rare cases, apply to have you sent to prison.

An SPA stops that happening, for as long as you keep to it. In practice it means:

No more court costs, if it is agreed before a summons
No bailiffs, if it is agreed before the account is passed to them, and no bailiff fees added
No deductions from your wages or benefits you did not agree to
One predictable payment you chose, rather than an amount set for you

When you can ask for one

At any point. What an SPA can prevent depends on how far things have gone, so the sooner the better.

Where you are	What an SPA can still stop
Reminder or final notice	The summons, the court costs, and everything after
Summons received	Enforcement after the hearing. Some councils still go to court and add the costs, but will not use the order while you pay
Liability order made	Bailiffs, and deductions from wages or benefits
Bailiffs involved	Further bailiff fees and visits, if the council takes the account back
Deductions already taken	Sometimes, an arrangement can replace them, if the council agrees

If you have had a summons, paying the full amount including the costs before the hearing stops the case. If you cannot do that, an SPA agreed before the hearing usually means the order is made but not enforced. Ask your council in writing which it will do.

How an SPA gets agreed

Step 1

Work out your budget

Everything coming in, then rent, energy, food and the other essentials. What is left is what you can offer.
Step 2

Put an offer to the council in writing

Cover this year’s bill as well as the arrears, and ask the council to hold recovery while it decides.
Usually within a few weeks

The council decides

It may accept, ask for evidence of your income and outgoings, or come back with a different figure.
Once agreed

Get it confirmed in writing

Including that the account is held, and recalled from the enforcement firm if it has already been sent there.
Every month

Pay on the agreed date

By standing order or direct debit, so a payment is never forgotten.
If a payment is missed

Recovery can start again

The council can go back to the court, the bailiffs, or your wages. Call before a payment is missed, not after.

Work out what you can genuinely afford

This is the part people get wrong, and it is the main reason arrangements fail.

Do not start from what you think the council wants. Start from what comes in and what has to go out. Debt advisers use a format called the Standard Financial Statement, which many councils accept as evidence. You can build your own on the same lines:

Income. Wages, benefits, pensions, maintenance, anything regular.
Priority bills. Rent or mortgage, this year’s council tax, gas and electricity, water, court fines, child maintenance, TV licence, car costs you need for work.
Everyday essentials. Food, toiletries, travel, phone, clothing, school costs.
What is left. That is the most you have for council tax arrears, and for any other debts.

Council tax arrears come before credit cards, loans, catalogues and overdrafts. If money is short, those wait.

Include this year’s bill. An arrangement that clears last year’s arrears while this year’s bill goes unpaid simply creates a new debt, and a second liability order. Any offer has to cover both, and councils expect it to.

Build in a margin

If your figures say you can afford £60 a month, offer £50. An arrangement that survives a broken washing machine is worth far more than one that looks impressive and fails in month three. Councils care much more about whether payments arrive than about the size of each one.

What councils usually expect

Every council has its own recovery policy, and it is worth reading yours. Most publish it online. As a general rule:

Before a liability order, councils usually want the arrears cleared by the end of the financial year, on 31 March. If that is not affordable, say so, and show why.
After a liability order, councils are often more flexible about how long an arrangement runs, because the alternatives, such as bailiffs, cost you more and do not always recover more.
Evidence helps. A council is more likely to accept a lower figure if you send your income and outgoings with the offer.

Government guidance to councils in England says collection should never come at the cost of fair treatment, and that a payment plan can be agreed at any stage. In Wales, councils have signed up to the Council Tax Protocol for Wales, which commits them to working with people to agree affordable repayments.

Put your offer in writing

Phone calls are fine for a first conversation, but the offer itself should be in writing, by email or letter. Send:

Your council tax account number, and the years the arrears relate to
A short explanation of what went wrong, such as a drop in income, illness or a change in who lives with you
Your income and outgoings
What you are offering each month towards the arrears, on top of this year’s instalments, and the date the first payment will be made

Ask the council, in plain words, for three things:

To accept the arrangement and hold any further recovery while you keep to it
To recall the account from the enforcement firm, if it has already been sent there
To confirm what has been agreed in writing

Keep a copy of everything and note the date you sent it.

If the bailiffs already have your account

Once a council passes the account to an enforcement firm, the firm adds a £79 compliance fee straight away, and more if it visits. You can agree an arrangement with the firm itself, but the first £79 you pay goes to that fee, and after that your payments are shared between the debt and any other fees. See bailiff fees explained.

The better route is usually to ask your council to take the account back and agree the arrangement directly. Councils can do this at any time. They do not always agree, but a realistic written offer is the thing most likely to persuade them. Send it to both the council and the firm, so the firm knows an offer is being considered.

If your offer is refused

Ask why, in writing. The usual reasons, and what to do:

“The offer is too low.” Ask what figure would be accepted, and over what period. If that is not affordable, say so, and point to your figures. An arrangement set too high is likely to fail, which helps nobody.
“The account is with the enforcement agents.” Ask the council to recall it. It keeps the power to do so throughout.
“We do not make arrangements after a liability order.” Some councils say this as a policy, but they still have a discretion. Ask for the decision to be reviewed, and mention anything that makes your household vulnerable, such as illness, disability, or young children.

If you get nowhere, use the council’s formal complaints procedure. You can also ask your local councillor to raise it. After that, you can complain to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, or in Wales the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales.

Ask for deductions instead of bailiffs

If a voluntary arrangement is refused after a liability order, ask your council to take an attachment of earnings or a deduction from benefits instead of using enforcement agents. The amounts are set by law, no enforcement fees are added, and the deductions stop when the debt is paid. See liability orders for how much can be taken.

Keeping the arrangement going

Pay on the agreed date, every month, by standing order or direct debit.
If a payment is going to be late, tell the council before it is due, not after.
If your circumstances change, ask to change the arrangement rather than simply paying less.
When the new bill arrives in March or April, check the combined amount is still affordable, and ask for a review if it is not.

An arrangement that is being kept to is very rarely disturbed. One that goes quiet is usually passed straight to the next stage of recovery.

If you miss a payment, do not expect another warning. Once there is a liability order, the council can go straight back to the bailiffs or your wages. If you know a payment will be missed, call the council first and agree what happens next.

When an SPA is not enough

An SPA works when council tax is the main problem and you have something left each month to pay towards it. It may not be enough if:

You have other debts as well, such as credit cards and loans. A debt management plan can put your council tax arrears and those debts into one monthly payment.
You have little or nothing left after essential bills, and several other debts. A Debt Relief Order may write the debts off.
Your debts are so large that an arrangement would take many years. An IVA or bankruptcy may be worth looking at.
You need time to get advice before anyone takes action. Breathing Space pauses enforcement for up to 60 days.

Before you pay anything, it is also worth checking you are not paying too much council tax in the first place. Discounts, exemptions and Council Tax Reduction are often missed. See discounts and exemptions.

In Scotland

Scotland uses a different process, with summary warrants and sheriff officers rather than liability orders and bailiffs. Councils there also agree payment arrangements, and the Debt Arrangement Scheme is a formal option. See the Scotland section.

Where are you with your council tax?

Choose the one that fits best. An adviser will work out what you can afford and put an arrangement to your council for you. Free, confidential, and no obligation.

Takes about 3 minutes.