Changes to Business Rates from April 2026

From 1 April 2026, the Government will introduce significant changes to the way Business Rates are calculated, with the aim to create a fairer, modern business rates system that encourages investment and helps protect the high street.

What's changing

  • New Business Rates support package (announced in the Autumn Budget 2025)
  • Retail, Hospitality and Leisure (RHL) Relief ends on 31 March 2026
  • New Business Rates multipliers from 1 April 2026
  • Updated and extended relief schemes
  • Revaluation of all business properties from 1 April 2026

Autumn Budget 2025 Business Rates support

The Government announced several measures to support businesses:

  • New Business Rates multipliers for 2026-27
  • A Transitional Relief Scheme to help phase in changes after the 2026 revaluation
  • The Supporting Small Business (SSB) Scheme
  • A longer Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR) grace period
  • 100% relief for eligible electric vehicle charging points and EV‑only forecourts

New multipliers for 2026-27

From April 2026, there will be five Business Rate multipliers based on property type and reateable value.

This includes two lower multipliers for Retail Hospitality and Leisure (RHL) properties with a rateable value below £500,000. The current RHL Relief will end.

See the full list of qualifying businesses for the RHL multiplier - GOV.UK.

Multipliers are set each year by Government to calculate your Business Rates bill. It shows how many pence you pay for every £1 of your property’s rateable value.

Category Rateable Value (RV) Multiplier
Small Business RHL Less than £51,000 38.2p
Standard RHL £51,000–£499,999 43p
Small Business (non-RHL) Less than £51,000 43.2p
Standard (non-RHL) £51,000–£499,999 48p
High Value Properties (all types) £500,000 and over 50.8p

Transitional Relief (2026-29)

Transitional Relief stops your bill from rising too quickly after the 2026 revaluation.

Your yearly increase is capped depending on your rateable value (RV).

Annual caps on increases

Type of property 2026-27 2027-28 2028-29
Small (RV up to £20,000) 5% 10% + inflation 25% + inflation
Medium (RV £20,000–£100,000) 15% 25% + inflation 40% + inflation
Large (RV over £100,000) 30% 25% + inflation 25% + inflation

These limits apply to your total bill, not just the increase in RV.

Norwich City Council applies this automatically — you do not need to apply.

Transitional Relief Supplement

From 1 April 2026, a 1p supplement will apply for one year to businesses that do not receive Transitional Relief or the Supporting Small Business (SSB) Scheme.

Supporting Small Business (SSB) Scheme

This scheme helps businesses whose bills rise sharply because they lose one of the following due to the 2026 revaluation:

  • Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR)
  • Retail, Hospitality and Leisure (RHL) Relief

Your annual bill increase will be limited (capped at £800 per year or the transitional cap, whichever is higher).

Examples of businesses that may qualify:

  • Lost 100% SBRR - A shop’s RV rises from £14,000 to £23,500 – bill increase capped.
  • Lost tapered SBRR -A café goes from £15,200 to £24,000 – capped increases.
  • Lost RHL relief - A restaurant no longer receives the old 75% relief – phased increases.
  • Reclassified from RHL to non‑RHL - A mixed‑use property is revalued as non‑RHL – SSB limits the increase.
  • Previously under the threshold - RV rises from £11,500 to £17,000 and no longer gets SBRR – capped.

Norwich City Council applies this automatically — you do not need to apply.

Extended Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR) Grace Period

If you take on a second property, you will keep SBRR on your first property for three years, instead of one.

Electric vehicle charging points

There is 100% Business Rates relief for 10 years for:

  • EV charging points assessed separately by the VOA
  • Electric‑vehicle‑only forecourts

Changes for pubs and live music venues

In 2026–27, all pubs and live music venues will receive a 15% reduction on their Business Rates bill, in addition to the support set out in the 2025 Budget. Their rates will then be kept in line with inflation only for the next two years.

For more information visit Pubs and live music venues relief – GOV.UK.

Revaluation 2026

Every three years, the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) updates the rateable values of all commercial properties in England and Wales. This process is called a revaluation and it is intended to ensure business rates reflect changes in the property market.

The next revaluation starts on 1 April 2026, using rental values from 1 April 2024. This means your property’s rateable value (RV) might go up or down.

For more information visit Business rates revaluation 2026 - GOV.UK.

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