# The Council Tax (Exempt Dwellings) (Amendment) (England) Order 2005, Note: Explanatory note


(This note is not part of the Order)
This Order amends the Council Tax (Exempt Dwellings) Order 1992 as it applies to billing authorities in England. That Order exempts certain classes of dwellings so that they are not liable for council tax.
Most of the amendments are consequential changes in the light of the Civil Partnership Act 2004. That Act provides that two people of the same sex may form a civil partnership and will then be given many of the same rights and responsibilities as those that accompany marriage. It also inserts a definition of “civil partnership” into the Interpretation Act 1978. References to civil partners and civil partnerships will include overseas relationships treated as civil partnerships in accordance with Chapter 2 of Part 5 of the Civil Partnership Act 2004.
This Order amends article 2(5) of the 1992 Order which makes provision about the persons who are to be regarded as relatives of another for the purposes of the exemption of dwellings by virtue of Class W of article 3 of that Order. The descriptions of “relative” in article 2(5) are extended to include, as well as those linked by marriage, persons linked by civil partnership. The definition of “relevant person” in Class N is amended to include a person’s civil partner.
This Order also updates Class E by substituting for a reference to paragraph 8 (patients in homes in Scotland) of Schedule 1 to the Local Government Finance Act 1992, a reference to accommodation provided in Scotland by a care home service under the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001. A similar change was made to Class I by the Council Tax (Chargeable Dwellings, Exempt Dwellings and Discount Disregards) (Amendment) (England) Order 2003, S.I. 2003/3121.
The amendments made by this Order to take account of the Civil Partnership Act 2004 have effect in relation to financial years beginning on or after 1st April 2006.
A full regulatory impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument, as it has no impact on the costs of businesses, charities or voluntary bodies; neither does it have significant financial impact on any public bodies.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2005/2865/note (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/council-tax-exempt-dwellings-amendment-england-order-2005/note
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.