Back to Work for Business Rates Payments!

Thousands of UK businesses are due to resume paying business rates, a tax on the occupation of commercial premises, following the end of the ‘business rates holiday’ on 30th June 2021.

As a response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the government implemented the ‘rates holiday’ from business rates payments which commenced in April 2020. In the beginning it was uncertain as to how long the business rates payment pause would last, but we are now nearing the end of the scheme after over a year of zero rates payable for businesses including retail, hospitality and leisure.

From July onwards, new schemes of ‘Retail Relief’ and ‘Expanded Retail Relief’ are said to provide 66% relief from business rates payments for shops, restaurants, galleries and others. The retail relief schemes will commence from the 1st of July 2022 and run until the 31st of March 2022 and then full business rates will be payable for anyone occupying commercial premises during the 2022-23 tax year.

Companies with retail portfolios will only be allowed a maximum of £2 million in relief across all of their properties, meaning very large operations will only receive relief on a small percentage of their total properties and small and medium-sized businesses will receive a significant amount of help as a percentage of their total sites.

If you are a landlord or occupier requiring business rates advice or recommendations on grants, relief and exemptions available to you, CPRA are specialists in all rating matters, including mitigation and appeal work. Feel free to contact our business rates department on 020 7770 8000 or email info@cpragroup.com.