Support Small Business Relief
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The Supporting Small Businesses Relief is designed to help
ratepayers who as a result of the change in their rateable value at
the revaluation are losing some or all of their Small Business or
Rural Rate Relief and, as a result, are facing large increases in
their bills.
The Supporting Small Businesses Relief will
ensure that the increase per year in the bills of these ratepayers
is limited to the greater of:
a) a cash value of £600 per
year (£50 per month). This cash minimum increase ensures that those
ratepayers currently paying nothing or very small amounts are
brought into paying something, or
b) the matching cap on
increases for small properties in the transitional relief scheme
[The cap being 5% for 2017/18, 7.5% for 2018/19, 10% for 2019/20,
15% for 2020/21 and 15% for 2021/22]
The Council's Revenues Team has issued application forms to all
those who would qualify for this relief.
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Business Rate Relief Scheme for Pubs
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The Government introduced a new relief scheme for pubs that have
a rateable value of below £100,000. Under the scheme, eligible pubs
will receive a £1000 discount on their 2017/18 bill. This is a one
year relief scheme.
Eligible pubs should:
- be open to the general public
- allow free entry other than when occasional entertainment is
provided
- allow drinking without requiring food to be consumed
- permit drinks to be purchased at a bar.
For these purposes, it will exclude:
- restaurants
- cafes
- nightclubs
- hotels
- snack bars
- guesthouses
- boarding houses
- sporting venues
- music venues
- festival sites
- theatres
- museums
- exhibition halls
- cinemas
The Council's Revenues Team has issued application forms to all
those who would qualify for this relief.
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New Discretionary Rate Relief
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A national £300m discretionary fund over four years from 2017-18
has been provided by Government to support those businesses that
face the steepest increases in their business rates bills as a
result of the 2017 revaluation. Billing authorities were expected
to develop their own discretionary relief schemes to deliver
targeted support to those who are facing an increase in their bills
following revaluation.
South Somerset District Council has been allocated the following
funding and has used its discretionary powers to introduce a new
local discretionary rate relief:
Year
|
Amount of funding
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2017/18
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£526k
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2018/19
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£255k
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2019/20
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£105k
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2020/21
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£15k
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Revaluation Support Relief Scheme
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Conditions of the relief
- There has been an increase in liability of more than 12.5%
after other reliefs have been applied.
- The ratepayer must have been registered on our IT System and in
continuous occupation since 31 March 2017 (Relief will not be
applied where a ratepayer claims occupation retrospectively)
- Those properties entitled to Supporting Small Business Rate
relief or Small Business extension relief will not be entitled to
this relief
- Properties must be on the rating list as at 1 April 2017.
(Relief will not apply where properties are entered into the list
retrospectively)
If all conditions are met then discretionary relief at the
following percentages of the net increase in the bill
for 2017/18 would be granted:
Financial year
|
Percentage relief of net increase for
those with RV under 200,000
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Percentage relief of net increase for
those with RV over 200,000
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2017/18
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43%
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15%
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2018/19
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21%
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7%
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2019/20
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8.5%
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3%
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The Council's Revenues team has identified all those ratepayers
that could meet the above criteria and applications have been sent
to them.
A reserve fund has been retained for those businesses;
(i)
that do not qualify for Revaluation Support Relief and;
(ii)
who have experienced an increase in business rates due to the
revaluation, and;
(iii) who
have suffered hardship as a result and;
(iv) whose
circumstances are such that the authority wishes to provide them
with assistance.
The Council's Business Rates Team will consider applications and
if you wish to make an application for the reserve fund please
contact the Revenues Team.
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State Aid
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The award of any discretionary reliefs must comply with EU law
on State Aid: Discretionary Relief qualifies as State Aid. An
application will be required by ratepayers where they will be asked
to declare that their company or business has not received more
than 200,000 Euros in de minimis state aid in the last three years,
and that granting relief under this scheme for this or any other
property, whether within South Somerset or not, will not cause this
limit to be exceeded.
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Transitional Relief
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Transitional relief may apply following a revaluation of all
Business Rate assessments.
Property values normally change a good deal between each
revaluation. Transitional arrangements help to phase in the
effects of these changes by limiting the amount by which a bill may
rise or fall following a revaluation.
Under the transition scheme, limits continue to apply to yearly
increases and decreases until the full amount is due (rateable
value times the multiplier).
The scheme applies only to the bill based on a property at the
time of the revaluation. If there are any changes to the
property after the revaluation date, transitional arrangements will
not normally apply to the part of a bill that relates to any
increase in rateable value due to those changes. Any transitional
adjustments will be shown on the front of your bill.
The transitional limits for the 2017 rating list are shown in
the table below: -
Transitional Arrangements for 2017
revaluation (before inflation) funded by 3 caps on reductions
|
|
2017/18
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2018/19
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2019/20
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2020/21
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2021/22
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Upwards Cap
|
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Small
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5.0%
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7.5%
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10.0%
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15.0%
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15.0%
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Medium
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12.5%
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17.5%
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20.0%
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25.0%
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25.0%
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Large
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42.0%
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32.0%
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49.0%
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16.0%
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6.0%
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Downwards Cap
|
|
Small
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20.0%
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30.0%
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35.0%
|
55.0%
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55.0%
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Medium
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10.0%
|
15.0%
|
20.0%
|
25.0%
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25.0%
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Large
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4.1%
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4.6%
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5.9%
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5.8%
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4.8%
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Note: these are year on year caps on increases. For instance,
the maximum increase for small properties over 5 years would be
64%. But a small property with an increase of 7% would reach their
full bill in year 2. Medium is above £20,000 elsewhere. Large above
£100,000.
Contact
us
Small business rate relief
The Small Business Rate Relief scheme
is designed to reduce the amount of Business Rates payable by small
businesses.
Who is eligible for the
relief?
You can get Small Business Rate Relief if you only occupy one
business property in the UK (see below for exceptions) and its
rateable value is less than £12,000. From April 2017 this will
be less than £15,000.
This amount of relief you can get changes depending on the
rateable value of your property:
- If the rateable value for your property is less than £6,000,
you'll get 100% relief. From April 2017 this will be less than
£12,000.
- If the rateable value is between £6,000 and £12,000, then the
percentage of relief available will decrease on a sliding scale.
From April 2017 this will be between £12,000 and £15,000.
If you occupy more than one property
You may still be eligible for relief if:
- Each additional property has a rateable value less than
£2,600.From April 2017 this will be less than £2,900;and
- The total rateable values of all your properties add up to less
than £18,000.From April 2017 this will be less than
£20,000.
- The small business rate relief will be applied to the
main property only.
An additional measure has been introduced for businesses in
receipt of Small Business Rate Relief. If your business takes on
additional property which would normally have meant the loss of
small business rate relief, you may be allowed to keep that relief
for a period of 12 months.
Please contact
us for further details.
You cannot receive this relief unless your business actually
occupies the property. If you do not intend to occupy a business
premises straight away you may be eligible for Empty Property
Relief (conditions apply).
If the rateable value of your property is between
£15,000 and £18,000, increasing to £51,000 from 1 April
2017
If your property is occupied and has a rateable value below
£18,000,increasing to £51,000 from 1 April 2017you're still
considered to be a 'small business'. Although you won't be entitled
to Small Business Rate Relief, your Business Rates bills will
automatically be calculated using the small business
multiplier.
Apply for Small Business Rate Relief
To apply for Small Business Rate Relief please complete the
online small business rate relief form.

After you've applied for Small Business Rate
Relief
We will assess your entitlement and send you an amended bill if
you qualify. You must tell us about any changes which may affect
your entitlement to rate relief, such as:
a) vacating the property
b) taking up occupation of an additional
property
c) an increase in the rateable value of a
property
If you do not report a change, you may pay an incorrect amount
for Business Rates and may even be investigated for fraud. If you
would like more information on what changes to report please contact us.
If you qualify for other reliefs then you may not be entitled to
claim Small Business Rate Relief and your bill will be calculated
using the standard multiplier. For example, if you would qualify
for, or are already in receipt of, mandatory relief as a charity or
rural rate relief as a post office, general store, Public House or
food shop then you will not qualify for this relief. This does not
include transitional relief or any discretionary reliefs.
Relief for rural businesses
Certain types of business in rural villages, with a population
below 3000, may qualify for rural rate relief. The Council is able
to give advice on the types of relief's available and how to apply,
alternatively view the Discretionary Relief Policy here.
Contact
us
Mandatory Rural Rate relief
To be eligible, you must fulfil at least one of criteria
below:
- The only village general store where the rateable
value is up to £8,500.
- The only post office with a rateable value of up to
£8,500.
- A food shop with a rateable value of up to £8,500.
- The only village pub with a rateable value of up to
£12,500.
- The only petrol station as long as it has a rateable value of
up to £12,500.
If you are a business located within a qualifying rural
settlement, you are entitled to at least a 50 per cent reduction in
the business rates bill. From April 2017 the Council will be
awarding a further 50% discretionary relief to all businesses
entitled to mandatory rural rate relief.
Contact us
Discretionary Rural Rate relief
To be eligible, you fulfil one of the criteria below:
- The only village general store where the rateable
value is up to £8,500.
- The only post office with a rateable value of up to
£8,500.
- A food shop with a rateable value of up to £8,500.
- The only village pub with a rateable value of up to
£16,500.
- Other businesses with a rateable value of up to £16,500.
If you are a business located within a qualifying rural
settlement with a rateable value of up to £16,500, we may decide to
give you up to 50 per cent relief on top of any mandatory relief,
as long as your business is of benefit to the community.
Apply for discretionary village
shop relief
Charities and non-profit organisations
Registered charities are entitled to relief on any non-domestic
property that is wholly or mainly used in relation to the
objectives of the charity. Registered Community Amateur Sports
Clubs (CASC's) are also entitled to relief. Relief is given at 80%
of the amount due. The Council can award discretionary relief on
the remaining 20%.
If your organisation is not established or conducted for profit
the council may decide to award you relief of up to 90%. To
qualify, the main objectives of the organisation must be
charitable, religious, or concerned with education, sports or
recreation, social welfare, science, literature or the fine arts.
The Organisation must occupy premises with a rateable value below
£8,500.
You will need to apply to the Council for these reliefs.
For further information please contact us.
Empty Property Relief
The Empty Property Rate Relief scheme provides for a reduction
of up to 100% of the Business Rates on a property.
Who is eligible for the relief?
You may be eligible for relief if your business premises
are empty. Certain plant, machinery and equipment used when the
property was last occupied or intended for use when the property
next becomes occupied may be disregarded when determining whether a
property is empty. The length of time you can receive relief
depends on a number of factors as set out below.
- non-industrial properties can get 100% rate relief for a
maximum of 3 months;
- industrial properties can get 100% rate relief for a maximum of
6 months.
At the end of these periods, your business will be liable for
the full charge. You will be charged full occupied rates if stock
or goods remain on the premises, irrespective of whether you have
ceased trading.
The following types of premises are exempt from Business Rates
when empty.
- Empty properties where occupation is prohibited by law;
- Empty listed buildings;
- Empty small properties with a rateable value of less than
£2,900;
- Empty properties of companies in administration or
liquidation;
- Empty properties owned, and last occupied, by a charity where
the next user of the property is likely to be charity;
Partially occupied properties
If part of your property is not being used and is completely
unoccupied for a short time, you may receive relief to reduce the
amount you have to pay.
To be eligible:
- part of the property must be unused and cleared of equipment
whilst the business is relocating
- or short-term practical or financial constraints must be
preventing you from occupying part of the property.
If we decide to issue a relief we will ask the Valuation Officer to
split the rateable value between the occupied and unoccupied parts.
Once the exemption for the unoccupied part has expired 100 per cent
empty property rates becomes payable.
Contact us
Hardship relief
If your business is suffering severe
hardship and cannot pay your business rates bill, you may be able
to receive relief of up to 100 per cent.
This would normally only be done in
extreme cases of hardship and for businesses which are particularly
important to the local community. The decision to grant relief
takes account of the fact that local council taxpayers will cover
part of the cost of the relief.
A successful applicant would need to
demonstrate all three of the following conditions:
- Hardship is being endured (established by the examination of
two years financial records).
- The business is viable and the granting of relief will help
ensure the future of the business.
- The business provides a considerable
community benefit. (We will take into account the range of
facilities available and the businesses impact on the local
area).
Contact us