Roger Hannah
  • About RH
    • Company Profile
    • Meet The Teams
    • Charity Work
    • Mailing Lists & Social Media
    • Our Clients
    • Career Opportunities
    • Privacy & Policies
  • Our Specialisms
    • Agency Services
      • Homepage
      • Property Acquisition Services
      • Current Client Requirements
      • Requirement Matching Service
      • Sell My Property
      • Let My Property
      • Meet the Team
    • Auctions
      • Free Property Valuation
      • Guide to Selling
      • Online Auctions
      • Guide to Buying
      • Auction Finance
      • Meet the Team
    • Building Consultancy
      • Homepage
      • Dilapidations
      • Schedules of Condition
      • Project Management
      • Party Wall Services
      • Planned Preventative Maintenance
      • Academies and Colleges
      • Condition Surveys
      • Meet the Team
    • Business Rates
      • Homepage
      • Business Rates Appeals
      • Government Gateway
      • Empty Rates
      • FAQ’s
      • Meet the Team
    • Capital Allowances
      • Homepage
      • Advice for Property Owners & Professionals
      • Government Legislation Change
      • Investigate a CA Claim
      • Meet the Team
    • Compulsory Purchase Order
      • Homepage
      • Scheme Promoters
      • CPO and Business
      • Compulsory Purchase Order Process
      • Objecting to a CPO
      • Residential CPO
      • Compensation Entitlement
      • CPO Advice & FAQ’s
      • National Coverage
      • Meet the Team
    • Expert Witness
      • Homepage
      • Meet the Team
    • HS2
      • Homepage
      • HS2 Overview Timetable
      • Compensation Schemes
      • HS2: How Can We Help?
      • HS2 FAQ’s
      • National Coverage
      • Meet the Team
    • Investment
      • Homepage
      • Current Investments
      • Live Investment Requirements
      • Become a Client
      • Net Yield Calculator
      • Meet the Team
    • Land and Development
      • Homepage
      • Development Consultancy
      • Strategic Development Advice
      • Development Agency
      • Economic Viability Assessments
      • Meet the Team
    • Lease Advisory
      • Homepage
      • Rent Reviews
      • Lease Renewals
      • Lease Consultancy
      • Meet the Team
    • Commercial Property Management
      • Homepage
      • Commercial Property Management
      • Facilities Management
      • Property Finance
      • Meet the Team
    • Valuations
      • Homepage
      • Commercial Property Valuations
      • Land Valuations
      • Residential Valuations
      • Meet the Team
  • Property Search
    • Search All Property
    • Feature Properties
    • Map View
    • Net Yield Calculator
    • Agent Mailing List
  • News & Case Studies
  • Contact Us

Business Rates Relief Explained

Home Articles Business Rates Relief Explained

Calendar 22nd May 2017

Person Roger Hannah

As an owner of a commercial property you will be required to pay business rates. If you aren’t already aware, business rates are charged on most non-domestic properties including shops, offices, pubs, warehouse and factories. Essentially a council tax for companies – the size of the tax will depend on the rateable value of the property that the business resides in. Typically, the higher the rent, the higher the annual business rate fee.

Case-dependent, you may be able to get business rates relief from your local council in order to lower your total payment. As the owner, on occasion, this discount can happen automatically but you are more likely going to have to apply for this relief for which you may need legal help.

Please see below the complete breakdown of the types of relief you may qualify for:

Small Business Rates Relief

You can qualify for relief if your property’s rateable value is lower than £15,000 or if your business only uses one property. You will not, however, need to pay any form of business rates on a property if you have a rateable value of £12,000 or lower. For properties with a rateable value of £12,001 to £15,000, the rate of relief will go down gradually from 100% to 0%.

Rural Rate Relief

You may qualify for a rural rate relief if your company is located in a rural area that has a population of 3,000 or fewer people. You also won’t need to pay any rates if in where you are positioned, the only shop or post office has a rateable value of up to £8,500 or if the only pub or petrol station has a rateable value of up to £12,500.

Charitable Rate Relief

Community amateur sports clubs, as well as charities, can both apply for a rate relief of up to 80% if a property is used for charitable good.

Enterprise Zone Relief

If you’re a startup or an owner that is relocating to an enterprise zone, you may qualify for relief. The local council works out how the relief is applied and it could mean you get up to £55,000 a year over 5 years.

Hardship Relief

Councils have the ability to reduce your rates with hardship relief. This is when it is deemed by your council that giving hardship benefits the local community or that you’d struggle with financial difficulties without it.

Exempted Buildings Relief

Property dependent, you may be exempt from business rates. This may apply to the following:

  • Agricultural land and buildings, including fish farms.
  • Buildings used for training or welfare of disabled people.
  • Buildings registered for public religious worship or church halls.

You will need to check this, however, as there are strict legal requirements in order to qualify for these exemptions.

Empty Property Relief

You will not have to pay rates on empty buildings for a total of 3 months.

Some properties can get extended empty property relief:

  • Industrial premises (eg warehouses) are exempt for a further 3 months.
  • Listed buildings (until reoccupied).
  • Buildings with a rateable value under £2,900 (until reoccupied).
  • Properties owned by charities (if the property’s next use is again charitable).
  • Community amateur sports club’s buildings (only if sports club continues).

Transitional Relief

Transitional relief will limit how much your bill can change each year depending on a revaluation. This will mean that your rates bill will be phased in gradually. You will qualify for transitional relief if your property is in England and your rates rise and fall by more than a certain amount for which your council will adjust accordingly.

Local Disruption Relief

You may qualify for a temporary relief in your business if your property is affected by local disruption such as roadworks, flooding or building work.

A relief can be a confusing process, especially if you’re not sure if you fully qualify or not. If you’re unsure at any point over whether you can get a business rates relief, please contact our specialists here at Roger Hannah & Co as they will be able to provide you with expert advice tailored to your situation.

Share this post

Follow us on Social Media

Subscribe to our newsletter

Receive notification updates of when Rare/Unique/Feature Properties go live | A summary highlight of our best articles illustrated in our Quarterly News Letter | Advice on changes in Government Legislation surrounding commercial property.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Search all Company
News & Case Studies

Search

About Roger Hannah

Roger Hannah is the largest independent firm of Chartered Surveyors and Property Managers in the North West and is located in the heart of Manchester City Centre.

0161 817 3399

Roger Hannah
Manchester Office
Century Buildings
14 St Mary's Parsonage
Manchester, M3 2DF

T: 0161 817 3399
E: property@roger-hannah.co.uk

  • About Us
  • Our Specialisms
  • Property Search
  • News & Features
  • Meet The Team
  • Articles
  • Sitemap
  • Terms & Conditions
We use information about your visit via cookies to improve site performance, facilitate social media sharing and offer advertising tailored to your interests. By continuing to browse our site, you agree to the use of these cookies. For more information see our Privacy & Cookie Policy. ACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT