Council Tax Premium in Isle of Anglesey: Second Homes and Empty Properties

Anglesey is a live example of the Welsh premium powers in motion: as at April 2026 you are on 200% total council tax on both second homes and long-term empties, with a plan agreed to move empties up to 300% premium (400% total) by duration in a later year.

Second homes - current premium, Welsh powers, definitions

Rate and timeline

Wales lets councils charge a premium of up to 300% on second homes and long-term empties (so up to 400% total council tax).

Anglesey has used those powers step-by-step:

A 2025 news piece confirms the policy line: "the level of council tax premium will remain at 100% for both empty and second homes", meaning double council tax.

So your clean April 2026 position for Anglesey:

• Second-home premium: 100%.
• Total bill on a second home: 200% of the standard council tax.

Anglesey could go higher (up to a 300% premium under Welsh law) but has not yet done so for second homes.

How Anglesey defines a "second home" vs main residence

From the council's second-homes page and committee papers:

• A second home is a property "substantially furnished but which is not deemed as the taxpayer's sole or main residence" (often described as "periodically occupied").
• Sole / main residence is the normal UK test: where you actually live and centre your life (work, GP, belongings, etc.) and you only have one at any time.

If your Anglesey place is furnished and not genuinely lived in as someone's main home, the council treats it as a second home and charges double council tax from April 2024 onwards.

Long-term empty homes - current premium and future stepped increases

Current rate (April 2026)

• From 1 April 2019: Full Council set a 100% premium on long-term empty dwellings (so 200% total council tax).
• A 2025 news piece confirms "the level of council tax premium will remain at 100% for both empty and second homes" for the immediate year.

As at April 2026: a long-term empty property (unoccupied and substantially unfurnished for at least 12 months) is charged 100% premium + 100% normal = 200% total council tax.

Agreed stepped increases towards 300% premium

Anglesey is already lining up the full Welsh up-to-300% premium on empties for a later year. A January 2026 news story summarising an Executive decision explains the approved banded premium on long-term empty homes, to take effect from a future April date (not 2026-27):

The same article notes that "no alterations will be made for the upcoming financial year, 2026-27".

Two key messages for 2026-dated content:

• Now (2026-27 bills): empties are on double council tax (100% premium).
• Future: the council has approved a sliding scale up to a 300% premium based on the length of time empty, but has not yet switched it on for 2026-27.

Exceptions and Welsh-specific carve-outs

Anglesey operates under the same Welsh statutory framework as Pembrokeshire and Gwynedd, with some local wrinkles.

Second-home premium exceptions

Under the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 and subsequent regulations, some second homes must not be charged a premium, even if furnished and not a main residence. The main Welsh exceptions are:

• Properties subject to planning conditions restricting use to holiday occupation only, which are treated differently when they do not qualify for business rates.
• Properties only treated as second homes because the owner is required to live in armed forces accommodation elsewhere.
• Some annexes forming part of a main dwelling.
• Properties being genuinely marketed for sale or to let (time-limited exceptions).

Where an exception applies you still pay standard 100% council tax, but no premium.

The consultation report also shows the council using some of the extra premium income directly for housing purposes, including GBP 350k a year for first-time-buyer grants and housing renewal.

Long-term empty premium exceptions

The same Welsh exception classes apply on empties. The Welsh regulations still protect:

• Empty properties being actively sold or let (for a limited time).
• Annexes and armed-forces-related homes.
• Certain rare cases such as dwellings that cannot be occupied for legal or safety reasons.

The council is particularly looking at over 800 long-term empty homes (as of May 2025) when proposing the higher premiums.

Appeals and challenge process

Anglesey follows the Welsh norm:

1. If you think your place has been wrongly classed as a second home or long-term empty, or you qualify for an exception, write to the council tax / revenues team asking for a review and attaching evidence.
2. Evidence might be: tenancy agreement, utility bills, sales or letting particulars, a planning decision notice, or armed-forces documentation.
3. If you still disagree after they decide, you can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal for Wales.

Challenge it in writing with evidence. If they will not change it, you can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal for Wales.

Contacts - Anglesey council tax and premiums

All the premium rules sit under "Council Tax - Second homes and long term empty homes" on the Isle of Anglesey County Council site. The council uses its standard council tax contact routes (phone, email, online forms) linked from the main Council Tax section; the premium page itself does not list a separate phone line.

Contact Isle of Anglesey County Council's council tax team using the details on your bill or via the online council tax pages if you think your property is mis-classified or you qualify for an exception.

Numbers and revenue

How many second homes and empties

• As at 1 September 2021, 2,670 properties were subject to the second-home premium (then 35%).
• A 2025 council post says "based on May 2025 figures, Anglesey has over 800 long-term empty homes", which is the cohort they are targeting with higher empty-home premiums.

Revenue from premiums

• The consultation report notes that the council's housing service has benefited by GBP 350k per annum from the second-home premium, funding first-time-buyer grants and housing renewal.
• Later commentary around the 100% premium for both empty and second homes describes it as an "eye-watering" charge that can take a typical Band D second-home bill to around double the normal amount, and a proposed 300% empty-home premium could push a standard bill from roughly GBP 2,000 to GBP 4,000 depending on duration.

Anglesey is already charging double council tax on more than 2,600 second homes and over 800 long-term empties, and is actively consulting on pushing empty-home premiums up to 300% (four-times bills) for the longest-term cases.

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