How to claim Business Rates relief
Transitional adjustments
Transitional adjustments will phase in the effect of significant changes in liability, which arise from the revaluation of non-domestic properties.
There are limits on the percentage by which bills may increase or decrease each year. Special rules deal with changes in rateable values and the merger or splitting of existing properties. Any new properties entered into the rating list after 1 April 2017 will not be subject to the transitional arrangements.
The limits on increases and decreases are for the 5 year valuation period 1 April 2017 to 31 March 2022.
The table below shows how these limits are calculated; however, these do not include any adjustment for inflation.
| Property size | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 | 2020-2021 | 2021-2022 | |
| Upwards cap | Small | 5% | 7.5% | 10% | 15% | 15% |
| Medium | 12.5% | 17.5% | 20% | 25% | 25% | |
| Large | 42% | 32% | 49% | 16% | 6% | |
| Downwards cap | Small | 20% | 30% | 35% | 55% | 55% |
| Medium | 10% | 15% | 20% | 25% | 25% | |
| Large | 4.1% | 4.6% | 5.9% | 5.8% | 4.8% |
Property size is determined by rateable value. A small property has a rateable value up to £20,000, a medium property is £20,000 to £100,00 and large is above £100,000.
These are year on year caps on increases; for example, the maximum increase for small properties over 5 years would be 64% but a small property with an increase of 7% would be paying their full charge by year 2.
These adjustments are automatically applied to your account, and will appear on your bill.