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Business rate relief and debt advice

Business rate relief

Business rate relief is delivered through Buckinghamshire Council.

Rate relief for retail businesses

Businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sector do not have to pay business rates between 1 April 2020 and 31 March 2021 or between 1 April 2021 and 30 June 2021. Rate bills will be adjusted automatically and you do not have to apply for this relief.

Ratepayers may choose to opt out of support by sending an email to their local Buckinghamshire Council business rates support team using the following contact details and giving notification of their request to refuse support. Please use the words “opting out” in the subject line.

In addition businesses in this sector may also be eligible for a further 66% reduction in rates between 1 July 2021 and 31 March 2022. This applies to all of these businesses regardless of their size or rateable value.

This includes:

  • shops
  • pubs
  • theatres
  • music venues
  • restaurants
  • sports clubs
  • village halls and bingo halls
  • estate agents and letting agents

Eligible businesses will be invited to apply for the 66% rates discount from May. Cash limits have been set by the Government on the total amount of eligible relief any single business and its subsidiaries can receive. The cash limit is £2m for closed businesses and £105,000 for open businesses.

Full details including a detailed list of eligible businesses can be found at GOV.UK: business rates expanded retail discount 2021 to 2022.

Any retail, hospitality or leisure business or organisation that does not get an updated bill, but believes they should get relief, should contact your local business rates support team using the following contact details.

Rate relief for nurseries

Buckinghamshire Council is using its discretionary powers to provide additional business rates support for eligible nurseries. This relief applies to properties which are occupied by providers on Ofsted’s Early Years Register and which are wholly or mainly used for the provision of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

Eligible nurseries do not have to pay business rates between 1 April 2020 and 31 March 2021 or between 1 April 2021 and 30 June 2021. Rate bills will be adjusted automatically and you do not have to apply for this relief.

Ratepayers may choose to opt out of support by sending an email to their local Buckinghamshire Council business rates support team using the following contact details and giving notification of their request to refuse support. Please use the words “opting out” in the subject line.

Eligible nurseries will also be invited to apply for a further 66% reduction in rates from May for the period 1 July 2021 to 31 March 2022. This applies to all of these businesses regardless of their size or rateable value. Cash limits have been set by the Government on the total amount of eligible relief any single business and its subsidiaries can receive. The cash limit is £105,000.

More details can be found at GOV.UK: business rates nursery childcare discount 2021 to 2022.

Any nursery that does not get an updated bill, but believes they should get relief, should contact Buckinghamshire Council using the following contact details.

Other business rate reliefs

Other business rate reliefs are available, more details can be found on our business rates webpage.

Business rate support contact details

We would strongly advise you to continue to pay your business rates if you possibly can. However, we would urge any business that is expecting to have difficulties in making their business rate payments to let us know so we can work through issues together in a sensible and practical way.

Debt recovery

Invoices

We will continue to bill normally for the provision of goods and services. However, the raising of some invoices may be delayed in light of recent coronavirus announcements.

Financial support

We will do our best to support residents who find themselves in financial hardship through this period. If you find you are unable to afford your service or goods, please contact [email protected]

All queries will be looked into by the relevant service area, and they will contact you to see how they can help. We will also work with you to discuss repayment plans.

Find debt advice

Many organisations offer free confidential advice to customers to help them prioritise their debt, and some of these organisations can also arrange payment plans with creditors.

Trustworthy organisations include: