Check your business rates are not too high

Name: Makesworth Accountants
Price range: $$

Business rates, rather than council tax, are charged on most non-domestic properties, such as shops, offices, warehouses, pubs, factories, guest houses and holiday lets. Business rates are based on the rateable value of the property. There are various reliefs that may be available to reduce the bill.

The properties are revalued regularly to reflect changes in the property market. The most recent revaluation came into effect this year, taking effect from 1 April 2023 based on the rateable value on 1 April 2021.

During revaluation, all properties are given a new rateable value. The multipliers are also revised.

Transitional relief

Transitional relief caps the amount by which the business rates bill can change each year as a result of a revaluation. The relief is given if your business rates bill changes by more than a certain amount. The effect of the relief is to phase in the changes to the bill as a result of the revaluation.

The amount by which the bill can change from one year to the next as a result of a revaluation depends on the rateable value of the property and whether the bill has increased or decreased as a result of the revaluation. The following table shows the permitted increases for 2023/24, 2024/25 and 2025/26.

Rateable value	2023/24	2024/25	2025/26
Up to £20,000 (£28,000 in London)	5%	10% plus inflation	25% plus inflation
£20,001 (£28,001 in London) to £100,000	15%	25% plus inflation	40% plus inflation
Over £100,000	30%	40% plus inflation	55% plus inflation

It is worthwhile checking your business rates bills to ensure that they have not gone up as a result of the revaluation by more than the amount shown in the table above. The bill may rise significantly, for example, if as a result of the revaluation a business no longer benefits from small business rate relief.

If you think the bill is not correct, for example, because the property details are incorrect or because you think the rateable value is too high, you should contact the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) via your business rates account. You should also check you have received any reliefs to which you are entitled and claim them by writing to your Local Authority if they are not reflected in your bill.