Miss any one of them and the property is not a second home. It is treated as an empty home instead, which is not always the cheaper outcome.

Here is the definition, how it differs from a long-term empty home, when a premium can be excluded, and what to do if the bill is not affordable. What the empty property council tax premium is covers the premium itself in more detail.

A dwelling that is nobody’s sole or main residence, is furnished, and is lived in for at least 25 days during the 12-month charging period. That definition is in regulation 2 of the Council Tax (Variation for Unoccupied Dwellings) (Scotland) Regulations 2013, as amended.

All three limbs, and each one bites

The regulations are the Council Tax (Variation for Unoccupied Dwellings) (Scotland) Regulations 2013. Where a property is unfurnished, or is used for fewer than 25 days, the council treats it as an empty home.

There is no waiting period

Second home status applies immediately. There is no equivalent of the 12 months that has to pass before a property becomes a long-term empty home.

So a furnished holiday flat used for a fortnight in July and a fortnight in October is a second home from the start of that charging year. It does not become one a year later.

Who is liable for it

Liability for an unoccupied dwelling normally falls on the owner, because the hierarchy in section 75 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 works down from residents to the non-resident owner. What makes you liable to pay council tax in Scotland sets out that ladder.

There is no longer a single national answer. The statutory maximum was removed on 1 April 2026, and SSI 2026/169 sets a national default of 100% while leaving each council free to set a rate above it, below it, none at all, or a discount instead.

What changed, and where it came from

The cap was removed by the Housing (Scotland) Act 2025, which amended section 33 of the Local Government in Scotland Act 2003. Local government finance circular 6/2026 is the accompanying guidance.

The 100% in SSI 2026/169 is the figure that applies where a council has not set its own. It is not a limit.

Why no article should quote you a percentage

The rate is now a local decision, published by each council alongside its annual budget, and it can change from one year to the next. Two properties in neighbouring council areas can be charged very differently, which is why why your council tax has gone up starts with who sets what.

A premium is charged on top of the full council tax for the band, not instead of it. Check the figure your own council has published for the current year before you budget for it.

Exemption first, then discount or premium

A second home is furnished and in use for at least 25 days a year, and the classification bites straight away. A long-term empty home is one continuously unoccupied for more than 12 months, and a premium can only be applied once that period has passed.

The two categories side by side

The category people forget

An unoccupied dwelling that is neither a second home nor long-term empty attracts a default 50% discount, which councils may vary but must keep between 10% and 50%. No increase can be applied to that middle category at all, and whether you pay council tax on an empty property in Scotland covers it.

Occupation of under 3 months as a sole or main residence does not count as occupation for the long-term empty test. Use as a second home does count.

It can. Schedule 2 to the 2013 Regulations lists the exclusions, and the two that come up most often are property actively marketed for sale or for let, and recently purchased property under repair or renovation.

Actively marketed for sale or for let

A property being actively marketed for sale or for let can be excluded while it has been unoccupied for under 2 years. The council will expect marketing on appropriate terms and at an appropriate price, with evidence.

That means listings, agent correspondence and a realistic asking price. A token advert is unlikely to satisfy it.

Recently purchased and under repair

Property bought less than 6 months ago and undergoing repair or renovation can also be excluded, and councils are able to extend that period. Keep the purchase date and the contractor invoices together.

The exempt classes come first

Separately from the premium exclusions, the Council Tax (Exempt Dwellings) (Scotland) Order 1997 can take a property out of charge altogether for a limited period.

• Class 2 covers a property undergoing or requiring major repair or structural alteration, for up to 12 months from last occupation and no more than 6 months after the work is substantially completed.
• Class 6 covers a property left empty on a death, until confirmation plus 6 months.
• Class 4 covers an unoccupied and unfurnished property for under 6 months, resetting only after 3 or more months of continuous occupation.

Recovery follows exactly the same route as on any other council tax account, and it ends in a summary warrant with a 10% statutory surcharge on the outstanding balance. There is no separate or gentler process for a property you do not live in.

The steps, in order

A missed instalment usually brings a reminder notice giving 7 days to bring the account back on track, and if it is not paid the balance for the year falls due. A final notice then gives 14 days before the council can apply for a summary warrant, and what happens if you do not pay your council tax in Scotland sets out the sequence.

There is no hearing and no discretion. Paragraph 2(2) of Schedule 8 to the Local Government Finance Act 1992 says the sheriff, on an application by the authority accompanied by a certificate, shall grant a summary warrant.

You are not a party to it, you are not cited, and there is nothing to defend.

The warrant authorises an attachment, a money attachment, an earnings arrestment, and an arrestment with furthcoming or sale. How much the 10% summary warrant penalty is covers the surcharge.

A combined bill can attract two surcharges

Water and sewerage charges have their own summary warrant under Schedule 4 to the Water Industry (Scotland) Act 2002, carrying its own separate 10 per cent. A combined bill in arrears can therefore attract two surcharges rather than one.

That is worth checking on any second home balance, because the water and sewerage element is billed alongside the council tax but recovered under its own statute.

Two things that are not true of council tax in Scotland

Council tax is a civil debt here, and non-payment cannot lead to imprisonment. Arrears do not appear on your credit file either, and whether council tax arrears show on your credit report explains why.

Write to the council saying which limb of the definition you say is not met, attach the evidence, and ask for a written liability decision. A liability appeal then goes to the Local Taxation Chamber of the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland, with a 4-month deadline.

What evidence actually helps

• Dates of occupation, which decide whether the 25-day test is met.
• Photographs or an inventory showing whether the property is furnished.
• Marketing evidence if you are asking for a premium exclusion, including listings and the asking price.
• The purchase date and contractor invoices if the property was recently bought and is being repaired.

Keep the argument narrow

The council is applying a three-part test and a list of exclusions, so point at the specific limb you say has been misapplied. Appeals have been heard by the Local Taxation Chamber since 1 April 2023.

A dispute about the band itself is a different application and goes to the Assessor first. How to challenge your council tax band in Scotland covers that route.

Treat the classification and the arrears as two separate jobs. Argue the category in writing and ask for an affordable arrangement on the balance at the same time, so recovery does not run ahead of the argument.

Asking for an arrangement

There is no statutory maximum period for spreading council tax arrears, so a longer plan is a competent thing to ask for. Whether you can pay council tax arrears in instalments over 12 months covers what councils tend to agree to, and our council tax debt advice page sets out how we help.

What is available once a warrant exists

A time to pay order is competent against a summary warrant debt under section 15(3)(aa) of the Debtors (Scotland) Act 1987, although a time to pay direction is not.

A money adviser can tell you whether one is competent on your figures, and what a time to pay order is explains the application. A statutory moratorium gives six months of protection from new diligence, once in any rolling 12 months.

If you are looking for a hardship reduction, read whether you can get a council tax discretionary reduction first, because the power most online guidance names does not exist in Scotland.