Moray Council Tax Debt Help

Struggling With Moray Council Tax?

Moray runs from the Moray Firth coast at Findhorn, Burghead, Lossiemouth and Buckie, inland through Elgin, Forres and Keith, and up the Spey valley through Rothes, Aberlour and Dufftown towards Tomintoul. It is whisky country and home to RAF Lossiemouth, with a mix of market towns, fishing villages and farms. Household budgets have been hit hard here: Moray Council raised council tax by 10% in 2025-26 and by another 10% in 2026-27, with a further 6% planned for 2027-28. If you have fallen behind, there are clear ways back. This page explains how the council collects council tax, who it uses to recover arrears, and how to deal with a debt before it reaches a wage arrestment.

How we can help:

• We deal with the council and its sheriff officers for you
• We help you agree a realistic, affordable payment plan
• We set out every debt solution open to Moray residents
• We can help stop or avoid a wage arrestment
• Free, confidential help, with no obligation

Watch: how council tax recovery and sheriff action works in Scotland, and how to stop it.

About Moray Council

Moray Council is the local authority for Moray in the north east of Scotland, one of Scotland’s 32 councils. National Records of Scotland puts the population at 94,730 in mid-2025, slightly down on the year before, in around 44,699 households. Its main towns are Elgin, Forres, Buckie, Keith and Lossiemouth, with smaller communities along the Spey. The council’s headquarters is the Council Office on High Street, Elgin, IV30 1BX.

The council bills and collects council tax and business rates, and its Benefits Service deals with Council Tax Reduction. The valuation band on your home is set by the Grampian Assessor, whose Valuation Joint Board is shared with Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire, not by the council itself.

Moray council tax contact details

These are the council’s main contact points for council tax. The council promises that any conversation about your finances will be kept confidential, and it is far better to get in touch early than to wait for a reminder.

You can pay by Direct Debit, the council’s preferred method, online, on the automated line, by internet banking or at a Post Office or PayPoint. Payments can only be spread over a longer period by Direct Debit. If you need longer to pay, the council accepts payment arrangement proposals through an online form, and we can help you with one.

Council tax in Moray

Council tax is an annual charge on domestic property, set each year by Moray Council. What you pay depends on the valuation band of your home, which reflects its value on 1 April 1991 and is set by the Grampian Assessor, not by the council. Your bill also includes separate water and wastewater charges, which the council collects on behalf of Scottish Water.

Bills are issued in spring for the year that begins on 1 April, and are usually spread across monthly instalments. If you want to understand the wider system, who is liable and how billing works, see our guides to council tax in Scotland, council tax liability and billing and collection.

Moray council tax bands and charges 2026-27

Moray Council confirmed a 10% increase for 2026-27 on 25 February 2026, the second year of the three-year plan it agreed in 2025. That adds £157.38 a year to a Band D bill, about £3.03 a week, taking the Band D council tax to £1,731.14, or £2,383.46 once Scottish Water’s charges are added. The table shows the council tax for each band and the total including water and wastewater, as the council publishes them.

These figures do not include any premium or levy, or any reduction, discount or exemption you are due. If you think your home is in the wrong band, contact the Grampian Assessor at 234 High Street, Elgin, on 01343 619819. A review can move a band up as well as down, and our council tax valuation guide explains how bands and challenges work.

Reductions, discounts and second homes

After two steep rises, make sure your bill is as low as it should be. Claiming the right reduction can cut what you owe and make catching up easier.

• Council Tax Reduction (CTR): a means-tested reduction run by the council’s Benefits Service. You can claim if you work, and you do not need to get any other benefit. CTR reduces the council tax element only, not the water and wastewater charges.
• Single person discount (25%): if you are the only adult in the property, you can claim a 25% reduction.
• Disabled band reduction: if a resident needs an extra room, an additional bathroom or space to use a wheelchair indoors because of a disability, the bill can be charged one band lower. See our disabled band reduction guide.
• Other discounts and exemptions: students, apprentices, carers and people with a severe mental impairment can be disregarded, and some properties are exempt. Our council tax discounts guide explains who qualifies.

Moray has used its powers on second and empty homes. Since 1 April 2024 a second home has carried a 100% premium, so it pays double the normal council tax. A home left empty and unfurnished can be exempt for up to six months, then get a 50% discount for up to six months, and after 12 months empty an additional 100% charge applies. The council offers relief from that charge in some cases, such as a 10% discount while a home is actively marketed for sale or let, or a 50% discount while a building warrant or planning application is considered. None of these affect the water and wastewater charges. Our empty dwellings guide explains the rules.

Business rates in Moray

Business rates, or non-domestic rates, are the commercial equivalent of council tax and are billed by Moray Council, through the same Customer Contact Centre on 01343 563456. The rate itself, the poundage, is set nationally by the Scottish Government and is the same across the country. Your bill is the rateable value of your premises, set by the Grampian Assessor, multiplied by the poundage.

For 2026-27 the Scottish Government set three rates:

Many smaller Moray businesses pay little or nothing through the Small Business Bonus Scheme. A single property with a rateable value up to £12,000 can qualify for 100% relief, with tapered relief up to £20,000. Other reliefs, such as charity relief, empty property relief and Fresh Start, may also apply. There are currently no Business Improvement Districts in Moray, so no separate BID levy. Unpaid rates follow the same recovery route as council tax, ending in a summary warrant and enforcement by Scott & Co.

Which sheriff officers does the council use?

When council tax or business rates go unpaid and a summary warrant has been granted, Moray Council passes the account to sheriff officers to collect. Sheriff officers are officers of the court, not private bailiffs, and their powers are set by Scottish law.

Moray names its firm on its own website: its non-payment page says it uses Scott & Co. Once an account has been passed to them, the council says all contact about the debt must be made with Scott & Co, and it publishes their contact details as 0131 477 8912 and aberdeen@scottandco.uk.com. Moray sits in the Sheriffdom of Grampian, Highland and Islands, and the sheriff court in the area is Elgin Sheriff Court on High Street, Elgin.

The council also says it may ask the Department for Work and Pensions to take deductions from certain benefits, either after a summary warrant or, for water charges, under the Water Direct scheme.

If Scott & Co have contacted you, our Scott & Co guide explains who they are and how to respond, and our sheriff officers and council tax hub covers every firm. We can also deal with them for you.

What happens if you fall behind in Moray

Moray sets out its own recovery stages on its website. Knowing them helps you see where you are and how much room you still have to act.

1. First reminder. Fall behind by one instalment and the council sends a reminder giving you 7 days to catch up. If you do not pay or contact the council, the full year’s balance becomes due within a further 7 days.
2. Second reminder. If you catch up but fall behind again, a second reminder follows on the same terms. Only two reminders can be issued in a year.
3. Final notice. Fall behind a third time and the council issues a final notice asking for the full balance within 14 days.
4. Summary warrant. The council can apply to the sheriff without contacting you first. There is no court hearing, and a 10% statutory penalty is added (Local Government Finance Act 1992, Schedule 8, paragraph 2).
5. Sheriff officer enforcement. Scott & Co can serve a charge for payment giving you 14 days to pay (28 if you are outside the UK), then use a wage (earnings) arrestment or a bank arrestment, adding further fees.

Before an earnings arrestment you must be given a debt advice and information package (Debtors (Scotland) Act 1987, section 47). The deduction from your pay is set by statutory tables (SSI 2024/293, in force from 6 April 2025), and your employer may take £1 per deduction. With a bank arrestment, the first £1,000 is protected. See how much can be taken from your wages. You can offer payment at any stage, and acting early keeps the cost down.

What to do if the council contacts you about arrears

Whether the letter comes from the council or from Scott & Co, the sensible steps are the same.

1. Open it and act. Council tax arrears do not go away, and ignoring letters only moves the debt further along the recovery process.
2. Check it is right. Make sure the debt is yours, for the correct property and year, and that any discount, exemption or Council Tax Reduction you are due has been applied.
3. Ask for identification. A genuine sheriff officer carries a formal identity document, and you are entitled to see it before you deal with them.
4. Do not overcommit. Only agree to what you can genuinely afford, because a broken arrangement usually leads straight to a wage arrestment.
5. Get advice and set up a plan. A realistic arrangement, the Debt Arrangement Scheme or another solution is what actually stops enforcement.

If dealing with the council or Scott & Co feels overwhelming, we can take it on for you with your permission and help you reach something affordable.

Solutions if you are struggling with Moray council tax debt

The most effective way to deal with sheriff officers is to resolve the arrears behind the enforcement. Depending on your circumstances, the main routes for Moray residents are:

• Special payment arrangement: an affordable plan agreed with the council or Scott & Co. Whether it is accepted is their decision.
• Debt Arrangement Scheme: approval of a Debt Payment Programme recalls an earnings arrestment.
• Trust deed: a protected trust deed ends an earnings arrestment from the date of protection.

Not sure which fits your situation? See our wage arrestment solutions overview, or get in touch and we will talk it through, free and with no obligation.

Free debt advice in Moray

Alongside our service, Moray has free advice locally, including the council’s own team. You never need to pay for good council tax debt advice.

• Money Advice Moray: the council’s free, confidential and non-judgemental service, which helps with debts including council tax arrears and can check your benefits. Call 0300 123 4563 and ask for Money Advice, or use the council’s debt advice eForm.
• Moray Citizens Advice Bureau: free advice, including on sheriff officer letters, on 01343 550088. Appointments with its money and debt adviser are on 01343 555163, and there is a drop-in service at 6 Moss Street, Elgin, IV30 1LU.
• National Debtline: free confidential telephone debt advice, on 0808 808 4000.
• StepChange Debt Charity: free national debt advice, on 0800 138 1111.

These services are independent and free. We work alongside this kind of support and can help you take the practical steps that stop enforcement.

Moray Council at a glance

Where to find free, impartial information

As well as speaking to us, you can check your rights with these independent, official sources:

• Moray Council: Council Tax
• mygov.scot: Council Tax (Scottish Government)
• mygov.scot: Sheriff officer powers and your rights
• Citizens Advice Scotland: Debt and money
• mygov.scot: Non-domestic rates guidance

« Back to council tax in Scotland | Sheriff officers and council tax | See all wage arrestment solutions