Business rates reductions

Some businesses and organisations may be eligible for relief on their rates.

Small Business Rates Relief

If you are a small business, you may be able to get up to 50% off your business rates bill. Any reduction will depend on the rateable value of properties occupied by your business in England.

Eligibility Criteria
A reduction on your business rates, called Small Business Rates Relief (SBRR), is available if your business occupies:

a) one property in England with a rateable value of less than £25,500, or
b) one main property and additional properties in England, as long as those additional properties each have a rateable value of less than £2,600, and the total value of all properties is less than £25,500.

How SBRR is calculated

Your reduction will depend on the value of any property in England occupied by your business.

Your business property's rateable value is measured by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA). The VOA re-valued all business properties in England in 2010 and the new values came into effect on 1 April 2010.

The value of your property will be shown on the business rates bill sent to you in March. Or, you can check the VOA website www.voa.gov.uk

Once your property has been valued, the council uses figures set by the government to calculate the amount of business rates you must pay.

All businesses have their business rates calculated using the government's 'standard non-domestic rating multiplier'.

From 1 April 2011 the multiplier is 43.3. This means that, for every £1 your business property is worth, you will charged 43.3p in business rates. However, if your business occupies property with a rateable value of less than £25,500 you can apply to have your rates calculated using the 'small business non-domestic multiplier of 42.6p.

For qualifying businesses occupying a property with a rateable value of less than £12,000, the charge can be reduced further, as follows:

Businesses occupying a property worth up to £6,000 have their rates reduced by 50%.

Businesses occupying property with a rateable value between £6,000 and £12,000 will receive a 1% reduction for every £120 of the property's valuation on a sliding scale.

How to apply
An application form is available on the Business Forms page. Click on Do it Online or use the Downloadable Documents link below. For more information on business rates call 020 7527 2633.

Budget Announcement 2011
The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in the Budget on 22 March that there will be extra help for small businesses.  Temporary increases in Small Business Rates Relief, which began on 1 October 2010 and were due to end on 30 September, will continue for a further year from 1 October 2011 to 30 September 2012.

This new measure means that:
Businesses with rateable values (RVs) below £6,000 pay no rates for this period.
Businesses with RVs between £6,000 and not more than £12,000 will receive tapered relief from 100% to 0%.
Additional costs for these measures will be met by the Government.
There will be no adjustment to the rating multiplier.
  

Frequently asked questions

What if I already receive SBRR?
If you already receive SBRR, and the value of your business property is still within the thresholds, the reduction will be included in your 2011/12 business rates bill automatically. Please continue to pay at the current rate until you receive an amended bill for changes announced in the Budget affecting the amount that you pay.

When will I received the amended bill?
The Government aims to make necessary changes to the secondary legislation by the summer of 2011. Once this is in force, you will receive your amended bill. 

What if I have not received SBRR, but think I am eligible?
The first thing to do is check the valuation given to your property, as this is how the council decides if you are eligible. Check your property valuation online at www.voa.gov.uk

If you want to appeal your property valuation, you should contact the Valuation Office Agency.

London City Group, Valuation Office, 2nd floor Cityside, 40 Adler Street, London E1 1EE.

W: www.voa.gov.uk
E: londoncentralgroup.vo@voa.gsi.gov.uk
T: 03000 504 650

If your property valuation means you are eligible, but we do not seem to have applied the reduction, please request an application form.

T: 020 7527 2633 or email business.rates@islington.gov.uk

What if the value of my business property has risen above the thresholds?
If you are receiving SBRR at the moment, but the value of the business property has risen above the SBRR thresholds, you will no longer receive SBRR from the date the value changed.

If your business has bought, rented or taken occupation of additional property since your original application for SBRR, then you must let us know in writing. This is a legal requirement, and there could be penalties imposed if you do not tell us.

Charity and Community Amateur Sports Club (CASC) Relief

Charities and registered CASCs are entitled to 80% relief where the property is occupied by the charity or the CASC, and is wholly or mainly used for the charitable purposes of the charity (or of that and other charities), or for the purposes of the CASC (or of that and other CASCs).

You can get more information by emailing business.rates@islington.gov.uk or by calling 020 7527 2633.

Non-profit Making Organisation Relief

The council has discretion to give relief to non-profit making organisations. For full details, email business.rates@islington.gov.uk or call 020 7527 2633.

Partly occupied property relief

A ratepayer is liable for the full non-domestic rate whether the property is wholly occupied or only partly occupied. Where a property is partly occupied for a short time, the local authority has discretion in certain cases to award relief in respect of the unoccupied part. You can get full details by emailing us at business.rates@islington.gov.uk or by calling us on 020 7527 2633.

Deferred payment of 2009/10 rates liabilities has ended

Ratepayers in 2009/10 were able to defer payment of 3% of their 2009/10 rates bill and, where applicable, 60% of the increase in that bill. However, the right to apply for this deferral payment has now ended. As a result, the deferred amount to be collected in 2010/11 and 2011/12 will be included in the bills for each of those years.