Your business is in retail, hospitality and/or the leisure industry. What help is there for business rates due to COVID-19?

You will not have to pay business rates for the tax year 2020-2021.

Are there any grants available for the retail, hospitality and/or leisure industry?

Yes. The Retail and Hospitality Grant Scheme provides businesses in this sector with cash grants up to £25,000 per property.

If your business has a rateable value of up to £15,000, you may be eligible for a grant of £10,000.

If your business has a rateable value between £15,000 and £51,000, you may be eligible for a grant of £25,000.

How is the grant applied for?

You do not need to do anything. Your local authority should deal with this automatically.

Your business isn’t in the retail, hospitality and/or leisure industry. What help is there for rates for your business?

Businesses that pay little to no business rates due to the small business rate relief (SBBR) will be provided a one-off grant of £10,000 to help with ongoing business costs.  If you’re eligible for SBBR or rural rate relief as of 11 March 2020, your local authority will contact you.  There is no need to apply for this.

If you have any specific questions that have not been answered above, please contact us or leave a comment below.