Business rates (NNDR)

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This subtopic provides guidance in relation to the revenue raising and retention powers of local authorities in relation to hereditaments (units of property) in their area through the national non-domestic rates (NNDR). It explains:

  1. •

    the legislative operation of the scheme and how it has evolved

  2. •

    the assessment of rateable value

  3. •

    who is liable for payment of NNDR

  4. •

    when an exemption of liability is appropriate

  5. •

    what discretionary reductions and reliefs for NNDR may be claimed

  6. •

    how the system is billed, collected and recovered

Legislative framework

As a tax on property, rates have existed in some form since 1601. The revenue raising framework currently in place was largely established by the Local Government Finance Act 1988 (LGFA 1988). LGFA 1988 established that:

  1. •

    rates were to be raised only on non-domestic property—occupiers of domestic property would instead pay community charges (from 1993 replaced by council tax, see Practice Note: Council tax)

  2. •

    rates bills were to be set nationally by way of government specified multipliers to be applied to rateable values for each financial year

  3. •

    local authorities would administer

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