Business Rates Deferral Scheme 2009-10
The Government has recently announced that it will bring forward regulations to enable businesses to defer payment of 60% of the increase in their 2009-10 business rate bills until 2010-11 and 2011-12.
- Businesses must keep paying their legally established liability as set out on their current bills.
- Once the regulations are in place – which we expect to be by the end of July – local authorities will write to rate payers, offering them the option of deferring part of the increase. This is likely to be in the summer. No need for businesses to contact anyone at this stage.
- The new bills will give the benefit of deferral based on the total increase in the 09/10 bill.
- For 2010/11 and 2011/12 bills, local authorities will add the deferred amounts.
- The effect is to provide a smoother profile of business rates payments over the next three years. RPI is widely forecast to be negative later this year, which would have a downward pressure on 2010/11 bills. This scheme offers businesses the chance to pay a lower increase in 2009/10, and make up the payments in the following two years.
Any new costs for local government associated with this change will be funded by the Government. The change will not affect local authority formula grant allocations and local authorities will be able to reflect the new arrangements in their contributions to the pool.
