Non-domestic rates
Non-domestic rates, or business rates, collected by local authorities are the way that those who occupy non-domestic property contribute towards the cost of local services. Under the business rates retention arrangements introduced from 1 April 2013, authorities keep a proportion of the business rates paid locally. The money, together with revenue from council taxpayers, locally generated income and grants from central government, is used to pay for the services provided by local authorities in your area. Further information about the business rates system may be obtained atGOV.UKor from Ealing Council.
Business rates instalments
Payment of business rates bills is automatically set on a 10-monthly cycle. However, the government has put in place regulations that allow ratepayers to require their local authority to enable payments to be made through 12 monthly instalments. If you wish to take up this offer, you should contact Ealing Council as soon as possible.
National non-domestic rating multiplier
The local authority works out the business rates bill for a property by multiplying the rateable value of the property by the appropriate non-domestic multiplier. There are two multipliers: the standard non-domestic rating multiplier and the small business non-domestic rating multiplier. The government sets the multipliers for each financial year, except in the City of London where special arrangements apply.
Ratepayers who occupy a property with a rateable value which does not exceed £50,999 (and who are neither entitled to certain other mandatory relief[s] nor liable for unoccupied property rates) will have their bills calculated using the lower small business non-domestic rating multiplier.From 1 April 2024 all ratepayers who occupy a property with a rateable value which does not exceed £50,999 will have their bills calculated using the lower small business non-domestic rating multiplier.
Both multipliers for this financial year are based on the previous year’s multiplier adjusted to reflect the Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation figure for the September prior to the billing year. The current multipliers are shown on the front of your bill.
Rateable value
Apart from properties that are exempt from business rates, each non-domestic property has a rateable value which is set by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), an agency of Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs. They compile and maintain a full list of all rateable values, available at the VOA website. The rateable value of your property is shown on the front of your bill. This broadly represents the yearly rent the property could have been let for on the open market on a particular date specified in legislation. For the 2017 rating list, this date was set as 1 April 2015.For the 2023 rating list, this date is 1 April 2021.
The VOA may alter the valuation if circ*mstances change. The ratepayer (and certain others who have an interest in the property) can also check and challenge the valuation shown in the list if they believe it is wrong.
Further information about the grounds on which challenges may be made and the process for doing so can be obtained by contacting the VOA, or by consulting the VOA website.
Revaluations
All non-domestic property rateable values are reassessed at revaluations. The most recent revaluation is taking effect from 1April 2023. The prior revaluation was dated from 1April 2017. Revaluations ensure thatbusiness rates bills are up-to-date andmore accurately reflect current rental values and relative changes in rents. Frequent revaluations ensure the system continues to be responsive to changing economic conditions.
Business rate reliefs
Depending on individual circ*mstances, a ratepayer may be eligible for a rate relief (i.e. a reduction in their business rates bill). There are a range of available reliefs. Further details are provided below and atGOV.UKand from Ealing Council .
Temporary reliefs
Some of the permanent reliefs are set out below but temporary reliefs are often introduced by the Government at Budgets.You should contact Ealing Council for details on the latest availability of business rates reliefs and advice on whether you may qualify.
Small business rates relief
If a ratepayer’s sole or main property has a rateable value which does not exceed a set threshold, the ratepayer may receive a percentage reduction in their rates bill for the property of up to a maximum of 100%. The level of reduction will depend on the rateable value of the property. For example, eligible properties with a rateable value below a specified lower threshold will receive 100% relief. Eligible properties between that threshold and a specified upper threshold will receive partial tapered relief. The relevant thresholds for relief are set by the Government by order and can be obtained from Ealing Council or at GOV.UK. Generally, these percentage reductions (reliefs) are only available to ratepayers who occupy either:
(a) one property, or
(b) one main property and other additional properties providing those additional properties each have a rateable value which does not exceed the limit set by order.
The aggregate rateable value of all the properties mentioned in (b), must also not exceed an amount set by order. For those businesses that take on an additional property which would normally have meant the loss of small business rate relief, they will be allowed to keep that relief for a fixed additional period. Full details on the relevant limits in relation to second properties and the current period for which a ratepayer may continue to receive relief after taking on an additional property can be obtained from Ealing Council or atGOV.UK
Certain changes in circ*mstances will need to be notified to the local authority by the ratepayer who is in receipt of relief (other changes will be picked up by the local authority). The changes which should be notified are:
(a) the property falling vacant,
(b) the ratepayer taking up occupation of an additional property, or
(c) an increase in the rateable value of a property occupied by the ratepayer in an area other than the area of the local authority which granted the relief.
Charity and community amateur sports club relief
Charities and registered community amateur sports clubs are entitled to 80% relief where the property is occupied by the charity or the club 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 club (or of that and other clubs).
The local authority has discretion to give further relief on the remaining bill. Full details can be obtained from Ealing Council.
Transitional rate relief
At a revaluation, some ratepayers will see reductions or no change in their bill whereas some ratepayers will see increases.
Transitional relief schemes are introduced at each revaluation to help those facing increases. Such relief schemes are funded by limiting the reduction in bills for those who have benefitted from the revaluation. Transitional relief is applied automatically to bills. Further information about transitional arrangements and other reliefs may be obtained from the Ealing Council or atGOV.UK.
The government has announced it currently has no plans for raising the higher national multiplier to fund the Transitional Relief scheme from 2023.
Transitional relief limits how much your bill will go up as a result of revaluation and if eligible, the increase in the business rates bill will be phased in gradually.
The information below shows the percentage increases:
| Rateable value | 2023 to 2024 | 2024 to 2025 | 2025 to 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
Local discounts and hardship relief
Local authorities have a general power to grant discretionary local discounts and to give hardship relief in specific circ*mstances. Full details can be obtained from Ealing Council.
Unoccupied property rating
Business rates are generally payable in respect of unoccupied non-domestic property. However, they are generally not payable for the first three months that a property is empty. This is extended to six months in the case of certain industrial premises, whilst certain other properties such as vacant listed buildings are not liable for business rates until they are reoccupied. Full details on exemptions can be obtained from your local authority or from GOV.UK.
State aid
The EU state aid rules no longer apply to subsidies granted in the UK following the end of the transition period, which ended on 31 December 2020. This does not impact the limited circ*mstances in which state aid rules still apply under the withdrawal agreement, specifically Article 10 of the Northern Ireland Protocol. However, in the vast majority of cases this will not apply. The United Kingdom remains bound by its international commitments, including subsidy obligations set out in the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) with the EU. Please see Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s (BEIS) guidance for public authorities explaining the subsidies chapter of the TCA, World Trade Organisation rules on subsidies, and other international commitments.
Subsidy control
The new UK subsidy control regime commenced from 4January 2023. The new regime enables public authorities, including devolved administrations and local authorities, to deliver subsidies that are tailored for local needs.
Public authorities giving subsidies must comply with the UK’s international subsidy control commitments.
The subsidy control legislation provides the framework for a new, UK-wide subsidy control regime.
Statutory guidance may be obtained
You will need to contact the council if you believe you have exceeded the Minimal Financial Assistance threshold.
Rating advisers
Ratepayers do not have to be represented in discussions about the rateable value of their property or their rates bill. However, ratepayers who do wish to be represented should be aware that members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyorsand the Institute of Revenues, Rating and Valuationare qualified and are regulated by rules of professional conduct designed to protect the public from misconduct. Before you employ a rating adviser or company you should check that they have the necessary knowledge and expertise, as well as appropriate indemnity insurance. Take great care and, if necessary, seek further advice before entering into any contract.
Information supplied with demand notices
Information relating to the relevant and previous financial years in regard to the gross expenditure of Ealing Council and the Greater London Authority is available on the council tax pages. A hard copy is available on request by writing to Ealing Council or by phoning 020 8825 7020.
Business rates supplements
The Business Rate Supplements Act 2009 enables levying authorities - county councils, unitary district councils and, in London, the Greater London Authority - to levy a supplement on the business rate to support additional projects aimed at economic development of the area. This power has also been extended to the mayors of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Liverpool City Region, West of England, and West Midlands combined authorities. Business Rate Supplements (BRS) are not applicable to properties with a rateable value of £50,000 or below, and authorities have discretion to increase that threshold. The total maximum BRS which may be levied by a levying authority is 2p per pound of rateable value. Levying authorities have the power to apply such reliefs to the BRS as they think appropriate and in such cases must include an explanation of the rules for the application of those reliefs in the final prospectus for the BRS.
The business rate supplement as shown on your bill is being levied by the Greater London Authority,
