Business rate reductions and exemptions

Properties occupied by a charity or trustees for a charity where the property is used wholly or mainly for charitable purposes qualify for mandatory rating relief (80 per cent of the total amount due).

Applications for discretionary rate relief in respect of such properties relate to the 20 per cent of the remaining rates.

Legal requirements

We consider each application on its own merits, but one of the following must apply:

• The ratepayer is a charity or trustee for a charity and the buildings, premises or land is wholly or mainly used for charitable purposes.
• The buildings, premises or land is occupied for the purposes of one or more institutions or organisations not established or conducted for profit and whose main objectives are charitable or otherwise philanthropic, religious or concerned with education, social welfare, science, literature or the fine arts.
• The buildings, premises or land is wholly or mainly used for the purposes of recreation and all - or part - is occupied for the purpose of a club, society or other organisation not established or conducted for profit.

Discretionary criteria

In addition to the legal requirements, we consider each application on the basis of the following criteria:

• The extent to which the organisation's objectives are in accordance with the council's purpose, aims and values.
• The extent to which membership is available to the public, the extent to which membership is drawn from specific groups of people, and the extent to which facilities, services, education or training is provided for specific groups of people.
• The contribution the organisation makes to the local community, with regards to: involving individuals and groups in community life; developing self-help groups; improving community safety; providing advice and information services; enabling and encouraging participation in sport and recreational activities; supporting people with housing related needs; contributing to healthier community; improving access; promoting equality and social inclusion.
• The extent to which the facilities and services provided by the organisation complement or replace services provided by the council or other organisations.

Financial information

Applications for discretionary rate relief should include:

• accounts for the last financial year together with a statement on the current financial position and any important
• items likely to affect that position
• the level of subscriptions and the date of the last increase
• the extent to which the organisation relies on its own fundraising efforts
• the pricing of the organisation's facilities and services
• the amount of grant and other aid made available to the organisation by the council or other fundraising bodies.

 

Business rates do not apply for the first three months that a property is empty. For certain industrial properties, this period is extended to six months.

After this period, rates must be paid in full unless the unoccupied property rate has been reduced by order of the government.

In most cases, the unoccupied property rate is zero for properties owned by charities and community amateur sports clubs.

If the empty property rate for the financial year has been reduced by order, it will be shown on the front of your bill.

A ratepayer is liable for the full non-domestic rate whether a property is wholly occupied or only partly occupied.

Where a property is partly occupied for a short time, we have the discretion to award relief in respect of the unoccupied part.

You could get rural rate relief if your business is in an eligible rural area with a population below 3,000. Your business must also be:

• The only village general store, food shop or post office, with a rateable value of up to £8,500.
• The only public house or petrol station, with a rateable value of up to £12,500.

If there's more than one business in the area, both businesses can still apply if they are different types of businesses - for example, a public house and a food shop.

The property must be occupied.

What you'll get

You will not pay business rates if your business is eligible for rural rate relief.

How to get rural rate relief 

Local councils manage business rates relief in their area.

Contact your local council to:

• Check if you're in an eligible rural area - the council will have a list of eligible areas and maps of those areas
• Check if your type of business is eligible for rural rate relief
• Find out how to get rural rate 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.

Contact your local council if:

• Your property becomes empty
• You get another property
• You make any changes to your property that would increase its value - for example, extending or renovating it
• The nature of your business changes or it move to different premises

If you stop being eligible for rural rate relief, you'll usually need to pay your business rates bill starting from the day your circumstances changed.

Relief is available to occupiers of business premises who are suffering hardship. Hardship is not defined, but is not confined to financial hardship.

If you think you may qualify for hardship relief please contact us.

If you invest in certain improvements to your property, you may qualify for relief from higher business rates bills.

You do not need to apply for improvement relief. If you're eligible, you receive the relief for one year from the date you complete the improvements to your property. The council applies the relief to your bill.

Improvements must:

• increase the rateable value of your property
• be completed on or after 1 April 2024

The improvements must also:

• increase the size of your property
• add new features or equipment to your property, such as heating, air conditioning or CCTV 

Improvements to existing features or equipment do not apply. You must have occupied the property during and after the improvement works to be eligible for the relief. The relief cannot be passed on to anybody else.

How you receive improvement relief

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) decides how much relief you'll receive based on your property's rateable value and the type of improvements you have made.

The VOA automatically identifies eligible properties and sends a certificate to both the owner of the property and the council, stating:

• the property's new rateable value
• how much improvement relief you'll receive
• when the relief ends

Once the council has received your certificate from the VOA and confirmed you meet all eligibility requirements, the relief automatically gets applied to your bill.

Concerned your VOA certificate has incorrect information?

The VOA decides which improvement works qualify for improvement relief and the amount of relief you receive.

While you have no right of appeal, you can contact the VOA about your concerns via the email address on your certificate or via the Government website.