Chancellors Autumn Budget Statement

Chancellor Rishi Sunak delivered his Autumn budget statement today. On the topic of business rates, he said “we on the Conservative Benches are clear that reckless, unfunded promises to abolish a tax that raises £25 billion every year are completely irresponsible.” The conclusion was that the business rates tax and rating list would stay firmly in place with some key reforms to help high streets and to adopt a greener future:

More frequent revaluations- Currently business rates revaluations are once every five years, this will be amended to once every three years starting with the 2023-2026 rating list, to make sure business rates are calculated based on more current market values.

100% Improvement Relief- Property improvements can be made with no extra business rates payable for twelve months. This means things like adding air conditioning, extra rooms and bike shelters will not result in extra business rates payments for a maximum of twelve months.

Extend transitional relief- Restricting bill increases to 15% for small properties and 25% for medium properties in 2022 and 2023.

Relief for eligible renewable plant & machinery- Renewable energy generation will no longer be charged business rates. This includes solar panels, wind turbines and EV charging points.

Relief for low carbon heat networks- Low carbon heat networks with their own rates bill will be exempt from paying business rates.

Cancelled multiplier increase- The government are freezing the business rates multiplier from the 1st of April 2022 until the 31st of March 2023. Therefore multipliers will remain at 49.9p and 51.2p.

50% retail relief for another year- Retail, hospitality, and leisure sectors will receive a discount of 50% off their rates bill for the year 2022/23, up to a maximum £110,000 benefit.

Duty to notify & annual confirmation- Businesses will now have a duty to notify the Valuation Office Agency of any changes to their property, or changes of ratepayers. Businesses will have to confirm annually that the assessment of their property is correct and if any changes are to be noted. Failure to comply could result in a penalty.

Limited right to challenge your business rates assessment- Businesses will only have a three-month window to lodge a Check or Challenge. This is from the 1st of April at the start of each three-year rating list, or three months after they become the new ratepayer.

If you are a landlord or occupier requiring business rates advice or empty property rates advice, 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.