Other reliefs
The government is providing funding to local authorities so that they can provide a discount worth up to £1,500 a year on office space occupied by local newspapers. This was due to run for two years from 1 April 2017.
In January 2020 the government announced a further extension of the scheme 31 March 2025. This scheme provides up to a maximum of one discount per local newspaper title and per hereditament, and up to state aid limits.
The relief will be delivered through local authority discretionary discount powers (under section 47(3) of the Local Government Finance Act 1988). More information and eligibility criteria is available on GOV.UK for local newspaper relief.
The Chancellor announced a 2023 Supporting Small Business scheme, the scheme will cap bill increases at £600 per year for business losing eligibility for some or all Small Business Rate Relief or Rural Rate Relief at the 2023 revaluation.
You can get supporting small business relief from 1 April 2023 if both of the following apply:
- your business property’s bill is going up after the revaluation on 1 April 2023
- you’ll lose some or all of your small business rate relief or rural rate relief
If you’re eligible, your bills will go up by no more than £600 per year until the next revaluation.
This relief will be delivered through local authority discretionary discount powers (under section 47(3) of the Local Government Finance Act 1988).
Should your property become empty during the period of the scheme or if you are entitled to mandatory relief for charities or community amateur sports clubs, you will no longer be eligible to receive supporting small businesses relief and your bill will return to the full amount due without this relief.
If you feel that you qualify for this relief but it is not showing on your bill, please contact us via our business rates enquiry form below.
Eligibility criteria for small business relief is set out on GOV.UK.
The government has announced the extension of the business rates relief scheme for retail, hospitality, and leisure properties, worth an estimated £2.4 billion in 2024/25.
This will support the businesses that make our high streets and town centres a success and help them to evolve and adapt to changing consumer demands.
The 2024/25 Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Business Rates Relief scheme will provide eligible, occupied, retail, hospitality, and leisure properties with a 75% relief, up to a cash cap limit of £110,000 per business.
Under the cash cap, no ratepayer can in any circumstances exceed the £110,000 cash cap across all of their hereditaments in England.
Where a ratepayer has a qualifying connection with another ratepayer then those ratepayers should be considered as one ratepayer for the purposes of the cash caps.
Qualifying hereditaments must meet the following criteria:
- occupied properties wholly or mainly used as:
- shops, restaurants, cafes, drinking establishments, cinemas or live music venues.
- Also, for assembly and leisure including
- sports grounds and clubs, museums, nightclubs, stately homes, theatres, gyms, public halls, clubs and institutions.
- It also include hotels, guest & boarding premises and self-catering accommodation, including caravan parks and sites.
The following aren’t eligible:
- Financial services (e.g. banks, betting shops)
- Medical services (e.g. dentists, doctors, vets)
- Professional services (e.g. solicitors, accountants, recruitment agencies, estate agents)
Eligibility criteria for the 2024/25 Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Scheme relief is set out on GOV.UK:
You can get heat networks relief if your property is only used or mainly used as a ‘heat network’.
A heat network supplies heating or cooling to other properties from a central source.
To be eligible, the heat network must:
- take its energy from a low carbon source
- supply heating and cooling to other properties - for example, homes, shops, public buildings, hospitals and offices
The heat network must not supply heat or cooling for industrial use - for example, to create products in factories.
What you’ll get
You will not pay business rates if your property is eligible for heat networks relief.
How to get heat networks relief
Contact the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) to check if your property is eligible for heat networks relief.
If your circumstances change
Report changes to make sure you’re paying the right amount and do not get a backdated increase in your bill or overpay your bill.
Contact the VOA if the property is no longer only or mainly used as a heat network.
If you make certain improvements to your property, you may get relief from higher business rates bills.
You do not need to apply for improvement relief or do anything differently. If you meet the necessary requirements, your council will apply the relief to your bills.
You can find out more about which improvements are eligible by going to GOV.UK and searching ‘business rates reliefs'.
If you have questions about a certificate of qualifying works, please contact the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) at the email address on your certificate. Please note that the VOA cannot answer queries about the occupation condition or your business rates bill.
What is improvement relief?
- Improvement relief supports businesses who have invested in their property.
- It provides relief from higher business rates bills, where the increase in your bill was due to making certain improvements to your property.
- The relief lasts for 12 months from when the improvement works were completed.
Who is eligible for improvement relief? Do I need to apply for it?
- You do not need to apply for improvement relief or do anything differently.
- We will apply the relief to your bills if you are eligible.
- To be eligible for improvement relief, you must:
- have qualifying improvement works, and
- meet the occupation condition.
- For more information, go to GOV.UK and search ‘business rates relief’.
How does improvement relief work?
- You will receive a certificate from the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) if you have qualifying works. The VOA will also send us a copy of this certificate.
- We will apply the relief and send you a revised bill if we are satisfied that you meet the occupation requirements. This means that you have occupied the property during and after the improvement works.
I have received a certificate from the VOA – what does this mean?
- If you have received a certificate of qualifying works from the VOA, this means that you may be eligible for improvement relief.
- Improvement relief provides relief from higher business rates bills, where the increase in your bill was due to making certain improvements to your property.
- The VOA will send this information to us.
- We will apply the relief to your business rates bill if you also meet the occupation condition.
I think my certificate for improvement relief is wrong. Who should I contact?
- The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) values qualifying works and issues certificates to ratepayers.
- There is no right of appeal against the certified values, however, you should let the VOA know if you think there is something wrong with your certificate.
- You can contact the VOA using the email address on your letter.
Where can I find out more information about improvement relief?
- To find out more about improvement relief, go to GOV.UK and search ‘business rates relief'.