Charities or trustees of a charity are entitled to an 80% reduction in their business rates if the property they occupy is wholly or mainly used for charitable purposes.
To qualify for Mandatory Charitable Rate Relief, an organisation will normally have to be registered as a Charity with the Charity Commission. You can register on the gov.uk website.
Absence from the Charity Commissioners register does not necessarily mean that an organisation is not a charity. An organisation that is not registered as a charity may also claim this relief provided it has similar charitable aims.
The following organisations are exempt from registration.
- The Church Commissioners and any institution administered by them
- Any registered society within the meaning of the Friendly Society Acts 1896-1974
- Boy Scouts and Girl Guides Associations
- Voluntary schools within the meaning of the Education Acts 1944-1980 and having no permanent endowment other than the school premises
Relief can be granted to charity shops; however the charity will only qualify for relief if:
- the shop sells wholly or mainly donated goods; and
- the proceeds are used for the purpose of the charity
Community Amateur Sports Clubs are also entitled to 80% mandatory relief. If your club has not already achieved CASC status and you would like to do so, please contact HM Revenues & Customs for further help and advice. You can find detailed guidance notes on Community Amateur Sports Clubs on the gov.uk website.
For all applications you will be required to provide the following information to support your application:
- Charity Commission Registration Number if a Registered Charity
- Date of registration
- Main Objectives of the organisation
- Details regarding the use of the property and how that use links to objectives of charity
- If a charity shop - the percentage of the shop used for the sale of donated goods
- If not a registered charity - a copy of the organisation’s constitution or articles of association
We may also arrange for one of our inspectors to visit the property.
You can make an application by filling out this form.
Please note whilst your application is being processed, your current rates are due and payable in accordance with your latest rate demand.
Once a decision has been made, we will write to you to confirm this. If relief is awarded an amended rates demand will be issued with new payment instructions. This will take account of any payments you have already made; any overpayment may be refunded, credited to any other amounts due to the Council or to future rate bills.
The Council has discretionary powers to award further rate relief of up to 20% (this is commonly referred to as ‘top up’ relief). Further information can be found on the Discretionary Top-Up Rate Relief page.
FRAUD WARNING: If you knowingly submit a form and it is found to be false, you could be subject to prosecution.
You must notify Sefton Council immediately if there are any changes in circumstances that may affect a discount or a relief.
Further advice and help for businesses is available from InvestSefton.