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If you run a holiday let, guest house or B&B

If you run a holiday let, guest house or B&B, you may need to pay Business Rates. Use this page to find out if you need to register your property. 

Holiday lets

Warning

From 1 April 2023, new eligibility rules for business rates apply to self-catering properties in England and Wales.

To remain eligible for business rates from 1 April 2023, your property must be:

  • available for letting commercially for short periods totalling 140 days or more in the previous and current year
  • actually let commercially for 70 days or more in the previous 12 months

If you do not adhere to these rules, your property will become eligible for paying Council Tax.

All new self-catering accommodation must initially be entered into the Council Tax list, for at least the first 140 days.

Only when all the eligibility rules have been met can the property be deleted from the Council Tax list and entered into the Non-Domestic Rating (NDR) list from the 140th day.

The property must have been made available from 11 November 2022, or earlier, to meet the 'availability test' on 1 April 2023. You will need to contact the Valuation Office Agency directly on 03000 501501 to discuss a change to a holiday let.

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) will apply a price per bed space on each property, based on its type, size and location, to produce its rateable value.  

Single bed space is the term used to describe how many people can sleep in the property. 

You can find more information about self-catering and holiday let accommodation on the GOV.UK website

Guest houses and B&Bs

If your guest house or B&B can accommodate 6 or more people per night, you will be included in the ratings list and will attract a Business Rates bill. 

The property will then be considered a composite property. This means that the residential side of the property will be included in the domestic Council Tax ratings list, and the guest house or B&B will be included under non-domestic Business Rates. 

When establishing the rateable value of the business side of the property, we will consider: 

  • The number of bedrooms; whether singles, doubles or family rooms, basic or en suite

  • The location and quality of the accommodation

  • The presence of the non-resident restaurant facilities          

For further advice, or to register your property for non-domestic Business Rates, please contact the Business Rates team