Business Rates

The non-domestic rates, or business rates, collected by local Councils are the means by which businesses and others who occupy non-domestic property make a contribution towards the cost of local services. Except in the City of London where special arrangements apply, the rates are pooled by central government and redistributed to local authorities as part of the annual formula grant settlement. This money, together with revenue from Council taxpayers, revenue support grant provided by the Government and certain other sums, is used to pay for the services provided by your local Council and other local authorities in your area.

Rateable Value

Apart from properties that are exempt from Business Rates, each non-domestic property has a rateable value which is normally set by the valuation officers of the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), an Agency of Her Majesty's Revenues and Customs. It draws up and maintains a full list of all rateable values, which are available on their website at www.voa.gov.uk. The rateable value of your property will be shown on the front of your bill. The rateable value broadly represents the yearly rent the property could have been let for on the open market on a particular date. For the revaluation that came into effect on 1st April 2005 this date was set as 1st April 2003.

The valuation officer has to maintain the list and may alter the value if he or she believes that the circumstances of the property have changed. The ratepayer (and certain others who have an interest in the property) can also appeal against the value shown in the list if they believe it is wrong. Further information on the grounds for making an appeal, and on how to make one, can be found on the VOA website at www.voa.gov.uk or at the following offices:


Inland Revenue Valuation Office,
Spring Gardens House, Princes Street
Swindon, Wilts, SN1 2HX
Tel: (01793) 581400

North Wiltshire District Council,
Customer Services, Monkton Park,
Chippenham, Wilts, SN15 1ER
Tel: (01249) 706246
Email: revenues@northwilts.gov.uk


The effect of successful appeals against values shown in the rating list that came into force on 1st April 2005, will normally be backdated to that date, although there are exceptions to this.  Further information about these arrangements may be obtained on the Communities and Local Government website at www.communities.gov.uk

National Non-Domestic Rating Multiplier

The local Council works out the Business Rates bill by multiplying the rateable value of the property by the appropriate muiltiplier.  From 1st April 2005 there are two multipliers; the standard non-domestic rating multiplier and the small business non-domestic rating multiplier.  The former is higher to pay for small business rate relief.  The Government sets the multipliers for each financial year for the whole of England.  The Government normally changes both multipliers every year in line with inflation.  By law, the multipliers cannot go up by more than the rate of inflation apart from some minor adjustments to counteract losses from appeals and, in relation to the standard multiplier, to pay for small business rate relief.  In the year of a revaluation it is set at a level which will keep the total amount raised in rates after the revaluation the same as before, plus inflation for that year. The current multipliers are 45.8p and 46.2p.

Transitional Arrangements

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 following a revaluation.  To help pay for the limits on increases in bills after a revaluation, there also have to be limits on reductions in bills.  Under the transition scheme, limits continue to apply to yearly increases and decreases until the full amount is due (rateable value times the appropriate 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. Further information about transitional arrangements may be obtained from North Wiltshire District Council or on the Communities and Local Government website at www.communities.gov.uk

Any transitional adjustments will be shown on the front of your bill.

Unoccupied Property Rating

Business Rates will not be payable in the first three months that a property is empty.  This is extended to six months in the case of certain industrial properties.  After this period, rates are payable at the standard occupied rate, unless the unoccupied property rate has been reduced by the Government by order.  In most cases, the unoccupied property rate is zero for properties owned by charities and Community Amateur Sports Clubs.  In addition, there are a number of exemptions from the empty rate (e.g. listed buildings and small properties under £2,200).  Full details on exemptions can be obtained from the local authority.  If the unoccupied property rate for the financial year has been reduced by order, it will be shown on the front of your bill.

Partly Occupied Property Relief

A ratepayer is liable for the full non-domestic rate whether a property is wholly occupied or only partly occupied.  Where a property is partly occupied for a short time, the local authority has discretion to award relief in respect of the unoccupied part.