TV Licence fee reduction

If you are registered blind (severely sight impaired) then you are entitled to a “blind concession TV Licence” which gives you 50 per cent off the cost of your TV Licence. Unfortunately you are not entitled to this if you are registered as partially sighted (sight impaired).

The blind concession TV Licence covers anyone who lives with you, as long as the licence is in your name. If your licence is in someone else’s name then you can change this and then claim the reduction.

How to apply for your blind concession TV Licence

You'll need to complete an application form and provide proof of your registration status to claim the blind concession TV Licence. You can fill in the application form online, print the form and then send it with proof of your registration status and payment to:

Blind Concession Group
TV Licensing
Darlington
DL98 1TL

To prove you are registered (certified) as severely sight impaired, you must send a copy of one of the following two documents:

• the certificate from your eye specialist (ophthalmologist) that states that you are eligible to be certified as severely sight impaired. This is called a CVI (Certificate of Vision Impairment), or BP1 if you live in Scotland 
• a certificate or other document issued by, or on behalf of your local authority that shows you are registered as severely sight impaired with them.

If you live in Northern Ireland, you can now apply for the concession by obtaining a letter from your community optometrist stating that you are eligible for Certification of Severe Sight Impairment (SSI), which can be used as evidence to apply for a blind concession TV Licence. The RNIB are working with TV Licensing to make this agreement UK wide as soon as possible. You can find out more about how to do this in our Blind TV Licence concession made easier to access news story.

Please don’t send your original documents as TV Licensing only need to see a copy and there is always the risk that you could lose your original document in the post.

To find out how much your TV Licence could cost with the 50 per cent reduction visit tvlicensing.co.uk/info.

If you have any difficulties with your application or would like more information then call TV Licensing on 0300 790 6117 or visit tvlicensing.co.uk/blind.

Entitlement to a free TV Licence if you are aged 75 or over

Free TV Licences for all over 75s in the UK, funded by the Government, came to an end on 31 July 2020. From 1 August 2020 anyone over 75 and not claiming pension credit (or able to apply for the discount noted above) will have to pay the full licence fee. To be eligible for a free licence you will need to be receiving pension credit in your name, or this can be in your partner’s name if you are a couple and living at the same address.

If you would like more information then call TV Licensing on 0300 790 0368 or visit tvlicensing.co.uk

Sound only receivers

You do not require a TV licence if you use a digital set-top box solely to listen to television programmes through a hi-fi or stereo system. The set top box must be incapable of recording and must not be connected to a device capable of showing images.