About business rates
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Business rates is a local tax that is paid by the occupiers of all non-domestic / business properties, in the same way that council tax is a tax on domestic properties. It used to help fund services provided by the local authority.
The government charges rates on common business properties such as shops, offices, pubs, warehouses, and factories. However, the property doesn't have to be used for a business - if it is used for purposes which are not domestic, it is likely to be rateable.
Business rates are calculated using a property’s ‘rateable value’.
The rateable value is a property’s estimated annual rental value on the open market.
The last revaluation, conducted by the Valuation Office Agency (part of HMRC), which came into effect on 1st April 2023, refers to values as of 1st April 2017. We are now in the 3rd year of revaluation.
Revaluation usually happens every 3 years, with the next one scheduled for 1st April 2026.
The rateable value is multiplied by the Uniform Business Rate (set by government) to arrive at the annual bill. For 2025/26 these are as follows:
- 49.9p for properties with a rateable value under £51,000
- 55.5p for properties with a rateable value over £51,000
For example, a property with a rateable value of £10,000 and a multiplier of 49.9p would produce an annual bill of £4,990
For more information see the revaluation section at the bottom of the page.
Occupied properties
In the case of occupied properties, the person or company occupying it is liable to pay the rates.
Sometimes a landlord may charge an occupier a rent which is inclusive of rates.
Even in these cases the occupier is still the person liable for payment, and the bill will be sent in his/her name. Certain reliefs are available for occupied properties.
NNDR explanatory notes
We are no longer required to issue paper explanatory notes.
We used to issue these with non-domestic rates bills.
You can see the information contained in the explanatory notes here.
Non-domestic rates explanatory notes [pdf document].
Business rates multiplier
We work out a rates bill by multiplying the rateable value of the property by the multiplier or 'poundage'. The Government sets this from 1 April each year for the whole of England.
The Government usually changes this every year in line with inflation.
For more information see the .gov business rates page [external link]