Business Rates - Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR)
Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR) applies if your business occupies just one premises with a rateable value less than £18,000. If your premises qualifies for SBRR then your Business Rates Bill will automatically be calculated using the lower Small Business Rate Multiplier.
To qualify for SBRR up until 31st March 2017
A Business Rate payer whose business occupies only a single premises with a rateable value of £18,000 or less, is entitled to Small Business Rate Relief unless:
- the business premises also qualifies for one of the other types of Business Rate Relief
- the business premises is unoccupied.
If you occupy more than one premises but your Rateable Value is below £18,000, your Bill will automatically be calculated using the lower Small Business Multiplier.
If your rateable value is £6,000 or below your bill will be reduced by 100% if it is the only business premises that you occupy.
If your rateable value is between £6,001 and £11,999, inclusive, the small business rate multiplier is used and your bill is reduced on a sliding scale - from 100% at £6000 to 0% at £12,000. For example if your rateable value is £9,000 the bill will be reduced by 50%.
If your rateable value is between £12,000 and £18,000 (£25,499 in London) the smaller business rate multiplier is used to calculate your charge.
To apply for SBRR up until 31st March 2017
Apply online now, see Small Business Rate Relief online application form (opens new window) - This form only to be used for applications relating to charges up to and including 31st March 2017. See below for 1st April onwards.
Please note, you are not entitled to withhold payment of rates pending the determination of any application made.
To qualify for SBRR after 1st April 2017
From 1 April 2017 the way that small business rate relief is awarded has changed.
If your rateable value is below £12,000 your bill will be reduced by 100% until 31 March 2022, if it is the only business premises that you occupy.
If your rateable value is between £12,000 and £14,999 inclusive, the small business rate multiplier is used and your bill is reduced on a sliding scale.
If your rateable value is between £15,000 and £50,999 only the small business multiplier is used.
Following possible changes in legislation, the information on this page is subject to change.
To apply for SBRR after 1st April 2017
Apply online now, see Small Business Rate Relief online application form (opens new window) - This form only to be used for applications relating to charges from 1st April 2017 onwards.
Please note, you are not entitled to withhold payment of rates pending the determination of any application made.
Where a business occupies more than one premises
If a business occupies more than one premises, entitlement to Small Business Rate Relief will only apply if the rateable value of each of the other premises is £2,899 or less. Where this is the case the rateable values of all the properties will be combined and the relief is applied to the main property only. A full charge will still remain due on the other properties. If the total rateable value exceeds £20,000 the relief will be removed from all the properties.
Help for businesses that take on additional premises
Businesses that would have previously lost entitlement to Small Business Rate Relief immediately, because of taking on an additional premises, now keep their existing entitlement to Small Business Rate Relief for a period of 12 months. However, if for any other reason, a ratepayer ceases to be eligible for Small Business Rate Relief on any day during that 12 month period, then entitlement to Small Business Rate Relief will cease on the same day.
Increased Small Business Rate Relief thresholds for 2017-18
From 2017-18, the £6,000 and £12,000 thresholds will increase to £12,000 and £15,000 respectively. Therefore, business premises with rateable values below £12,000 that meet the eligibility criteria will receive 100% relief and those with rateable values between £12,000 and £15,000 will receive tapered relief. The threshold for the standard business rates multiplier will also increase from £18,000 (£25,500 in London) to a rateable value of £51,000.