Your local authority calculates your business rates bill by multiplying the rateable value of your property by the appropriate non-domestic rating multiplier, which is set by central government. From 1 April 2011 the two multipliers are:
The former is higher to pay for Small Business Rate Relief. So if the rateable value of your property was £25,000 this would be multiplied by 43.3p to get a total payable for the year of £10,825 before any rate relief is applied.
Every 5 years the Valuation Office Agency carries out a revaluation of all business properties – the latest one is effective from 1 April 2010. Any rise in your rateable value at revaluation does not necessarily mean your rates bill will rise too. This is because the non-domestic rating multiplier is adjusted to make sure the total amount raised from ratepayers stays the same after allowing for inflation.
On the other hand, if your rates bill does rise significantly at revaluation, you may be protected by transitional arrangements. These limit the percentage by which a rates bill can increase or decrease in a single year.
Your local authority calculates the amount you should pay in business rates, adjusted to include any relief or transitional adjustment that you are entitled to.
