On 27 October 2021 the government announced that it would extend the current statutory transitional relief scheme for one year until the end of financial year 2023 to coincide with Revaluation 2023.
The extension will build on the transitional arrangements introduced in relation to the 2017 Revaluation, which was put in place to support businesses by ensuring any large changes to rate bills were phased in. This original statutory scheme was put in place for five years and will end on Thursday 31 March 2022.
The extension of the relief will ensure eligible properties receive the same level of protection they would have received had the statutory transitional relief scheme extended into 2022/23.
In summary the relief:
We have identified those properties we deem eligible for this relief and have temporarily put on hold issuing the 2022 to 2023 start of year business rates bill. The reason being is we need to understand that the business responsible for the property being awarded the relief, wishes to accept it and by doing so will not breech the permitted subsidy allowance.
Once approved the relief will be applied to the current bill and we can provide an alternative instalment arrangement for ratepayers. This spreads the liability for the period from when the start of year bill is issued to 31 March 2023 over all the remaining months of the year.
Yes, if you meet the eligibility criteria you need to request the relief to be applied to your 2022 – 2023 bill using the form in the link below and declare any subsidies received at the time of application. This is to evidence that by accepting this relief the business will not breach the Small Amounts of Financial Assistance threshold.
You need to complete the form in the link below to let us know you wish to decline the relief being applied to your 2022 to 2023 business rates bill due to reaching the Small Amounts of Financial Assistance threshold. We will then issue you with your up to date business rates bill for 2022 to 2023.
Complete the Transitional Relief declaration form
Transitional relief is likely to be classed as a public subsidy and so can only be awarded if the current UK Subsidy threshold is not breached.
The UK Subsidy Small Amounts of Financial Assistance allowance (SAFA) permits a business at group company level (for example, a holding company and its subsidiaries) to receive up to the value of 325,000 special drawing rights in subsidies over a three-year period (the current and the two previous financial years). The special drawing rights can be converted into UK pound sterling using the special drawing rights calculator as the value can change on a daily basis. For example, this equated to £343,000 on 9 December 2021.
For the purposes of calculating the total amount of subsidy received this should include all business grants (throughout the three years) and any other subsidies claimed previously under SAFA but should not include relief awarded under the Expanded Retail Discount granted in either 2020/21 or 2021/22.