The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) regularly updates the rateable values of business and other non-domestic properties through a process called revaluation. This ensures business rates bills reflect changes in the property market and are based on the most up-to-date information.
Rateable values represent the estimated rent a property could have been let for on a set valuation date.
The current revaluation is the 2023 rating list, which is based on a valuation date of 1 April 2021. These rateable values have been used to calculate business rates bills from 1 April 2023.
The next revaluation will take effect from 1 April 2026, and the autumn budget 2025 will confirm the exact multipliers for 2026. A second piece of legislation will then define retail, hospitality and leisure eligibility for the new system.
New multipliers from 2026
- Two new lower multipliers will apply to RHL properties with rateable values (RVs) below £500,000. These replace the annual RHL relief, offering long-term certainty.
- A higher multiplier will apply to all properties with RVs of £500,000 and above, targeting large distribution centres and online retailers.
- Business rates bills will continue to be calculated by multiplying the rateable value by the relevant multiplier and then applying any eligible reliefs.
| Multiplier type | Applies to |
| Small business retail, hospitality and leisure multiplier | Retail, hospitality & leisure businesses with a rateable value over £51,000 |
| Small business non-retail, hospitality and leisure multiplier | Non-retail, hospitality & leisure businesses with a rateable value over £51,000 |
| Standard retail, hospitality and leisure multiplier | Retail, hospitality & leisure businesses with a rateable value between £51,000 - £499,999 |
| Standard non-retail, hospitality and leisure multiplier | Non-retail, hospitality & leisure businesses with a rateable value between £51,000 - £499,999 |
| Large property multiplier | All properties with rateable value above or equal to £500,000 |
Legislative safeguards
The Non-Domestic Rating (multipliers and private schools) Bill introduces limits:
- Large property multiplier can’t exceed the standard multiplier by more than 10p.
- Retail, hospitality and leisure multipliers can’t be more than 20p lower than the small business multiplier.
Find out more
You can visit either the Valuation Office Agency website, the Gov.uk website, or the HM Treasury website.
