Budget 2022: Impact on your Business Rates Liability

Following the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement 2022, there have been a series of important changes that will affect business rates liability from 1st April 2023 onwards, which we summarise below:

Draft Rating List Published

• The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) has published your Draft Rateable Value for the forthcoming 2023 Rating List for properties in England & Wales.
• These values will dictate your rates liability for the next three financial years (01/04/2023 to 31/03/2026).
• Find your New Rateable Value here: https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/business-rates-find/search or google: “find a business rates valuation”.
• Your new Rateable Value should reflect your property’s hypothetical rental value as of 1st April 2021 (aka the antecedent valuation date).

Winners and Losers

• The VOA has released summary data confirming the changes in Rateable Value as a result of the 2023 Rating Revaluation.
• The total Rateable Value of England & Wales has increased to £70.3 billion from £65.7 billion in the previous 2017 Rating List.
• By Sector: Overall Retail is down -10%, which appears conservative and may result in a surge of appeals;
• Offices have increased by +10% in England and +5% in Wales;
• Industrials have witnessed the most significant increase, which is not unexpected, rising +28% in England and +12% in Wales.
• Figures for Scotland will be published by December.

Autumn Statement: Announcements with effect from April 2023

• Freezing the multiplier in England for 2022/24; 49.9p (small business multiplier) and 51.2p (standard multiplier). A “Small Business” will have a Rateable Value below £51,000.
• Upwards Transitional Relief Only – This will cap large increases in rates liability due to the 2023 Rating Revaluation. Downwards caps, which limit the effect of a large decrease in liability as a result of a Rating Revaluation have been scrapped, which is good news for ratepayers expecting a reduction in Rateable Value.
• The ‘upward caps’ will be as follows:

• Retail, Hospitality & Leisure Relief - Eligible properties will receive 75% relief from rates up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business.
• Small Business Rates Relief (SBRR) – There was no announcement altering the thresholds for SBRR, which are currently: zero rates payable for properties with an RV less than £12,000 and tapered between £12,001 and £15,000. Should a property no longer be eligible for SBRR as a result of the 2023 Rating Revaluation, the new increased liability will be capped at £600 per year from 1st April 2023.

Appeals Deadline

• The deadline for serving appeals against the existing Rateable Values is 31st March 2023.
• Appeals served after this date will be invalid and ineligible for a backdated rates rebate to 1st April 2017.
• Please contact us to ensure all your properties have been reviewed and protective appeals have been served before the deadline so your financial interest is protected.
• We will need your current annual passing rent in order to serve an appeal.