Small business rates relief

Some properties may be eligible for 'small business rates relief':

• Properties with a rateable value up to £12,000 will receive 100% rate relief.
• Properties between £12,000 and £15,000 will be awarded small business rates relief on a sliding scale. The amount will be calculated using the small business non-domestic rating multiplier of 49.9p.
• Properties with a rateable value between £15,001 and £50,999 will have their bills calculated using the small business non-domestic rating multiplier of 49.9p.
• Relief is extended to ratepayers who occupy other properties in England with a rateable value of less than £2,900, providing the total rateable value of all the properties is below £20,000. Small business rates relief is only awarded to the property with the highest rateable value. Those properties with rateable values of less than £2,900 will have the smaller multiplier of 49.9p applied.
  Please note, single properties or multiple properties with a rateable value, or combined rateable value, of £20,000 or more will not qualify for small business rates relief.

To apply download the small business rates relief application form or contact Revenues and Benefits Services on 01642 726006. Our phone lines are open Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday (10am to 4:30pm), and Friday (10am to 4pm). They are closed on Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays.

Small business rates relief application form.

Small business rates relief is reviewed annually; you'll be sent a review form which you must complete and return. If you fail to return the form, your small business rates relief amount will be removed from your account and you'll be sent a revised bill for the increased amount of business rates you owe.

Empty property exemption

Empty properties may be eligible for rate relief in the following circumstances:

• properties where the rateable value does not exceed £2,899
• certain types of industrial properties e.g. factories, warehouses
• properties where occupation is prohibited by law e.g. by Health and Safety legislation
• properties empty due to action taken by the Crown, or by any public or local authority, either to prevent occupation or to acquire the property, e.g. a compulsory purchase order has been made
• listed buildings or those subject to a preservation order
• properties where the person is liable only in his/her capacity as a personal representative of a deceased person, a liquidator or a trustee under a deed of arrangement
• properties where the person entitled to possession is the subject of insolvency proceedings

If your empty property was used for industrial purposes or as a warehouse, you can qualify for up to six months of empty relief exemption on your account. If your property wasn't used for these purposes, the empty relief exemption will only apply for three months.

All exempt properties are inspected and renewal applications are sent regularly.

To apply for an empty property exemption:

Email: ndr@middlesbrough.gov.uk

Write to: Revenues and Benefits Services, PO Box 2, Middlesbrough House, 50 Corporation Road, Middlesbrough, TS1 2YL