Small business rate relief

You will be eligible for small business rate relief if you generally occupy only one property and your rateable value is below a certain level. The system varies between England and Wales.  Small business rate relief is administered by your local authority.

Small business rate relief in England

You will be eligible for small business rate relief in England if your rateable value is below £18,000 (£25,500 in London):
 

• If your 2010 rateable value is £6,000 or below, the small business rate multiplier is used and the bill will be reduced by 50 per cent.

• If your 2010 rateable value is between £6,001 and £11,999 inclusive, the small business rate multiplier is used and the bill will be reduced on a sliding scale from 50 per cent at the bottom of the range to 0 per cent at the top. For example, if the rateable value is £9,000, the bill will be reduced by 25 per cent.

• If your 2010 rateable value is between £12,000 and £17,999 (£25,499 in London), the small business rate multiplier is used only.

Between 1 October 2010 and 30 September 2012, eligible ratepayers will receive small business rate relief at 100 per cent on properties up to £6,000 (rather than 50 per cent), and a tapering relief from 100 per cent to 0 per cent for properties up to £12,000 in rateable value for that period.
The relief was originally doubled by the government until September 2011, but this was extended by the Budget in March 2011.
For more information on the current small business multiplier, see the page on the current multipliers in our guide: business rates - an overview.

If you have more than one business property, the relief is only available if the rateable value of each of the other properties is below £2,600. If this is the case, the rateable values of all the properties will be combined and the relief is applied to the main property based on the total rateable value.
You should contact your local authority to find out more - find contact details for your local authority in our Contacts Directory.

You will be exempt from paying business rates on empty property for three months after the property becomes vacant.
There are additional exemptions for certain types of property or for properties under a set rateable value:

• industrial premises, such as warehouses, are exempt for a further three months

• listed buildings are exempt until they become occupied again

• buildings with a rateable value under £2,600 are exempt until they become occupied again

• properties owned by charities are exempt if the property's next use is likely to be wholly or mainly for charitable purposes

• community amateur sports club buildings are exempt if their next use is likely to be wholly or mainly for a sports club

After the exemption period ends, you will be liable for the full business rate bill.
You should contact your local authority to let them know if your property becomes vacant.

Autumn 2011