Important Information about 2026-27 Non-Domestic Rates Bills
In her presentation of the Scottish Budget, Shona Robison, the Cabinet Secretary of Finance and Local Government announced the proposals for the levying of Non-Domestic Rates in the coming financial year:
2026-27 Rates Poundage
- the 2026-27 Non-Domestic Rates Basic Poundage payable on properties with a Rateable Value up to £51,000 will be reduced to 48.1 pence. This is a reduction of 1.7 pence (equivalent to 3.41%) from the 2025-26 Basic Poundage of 49.8 pence;
- the 2026-27 Non-Domestic Rates Intermediate Property Poundage payable on properties with a Rateable Value of £51,001 to £100,000 will be reduced to 53.5 pence (which is the Basic Poundage plus an Intermediate Property Supplement of 5.4 pence). This is a reduction of 1.9 pence (equivalent to 3.43%) from the 2025-26 Intermediate Property poundage of 55.4 pence;
- the 2026-27 Non-Domestic Rates Higher Property Poundage payable on properties with a Rateable Value in excess of £100,000 will be reduced to 54.8 pence (which is the Basic Poundage plus a Higher Property Supplement of 6.7 pence). This is a reduction of 2.0 pence (equivalent to 3.52%) from the 2025-26 Higher Property poundage of 56.8 pence.
Transitional Relief
- a Revaluation Transitional Relief Scheme will be in place for the duration of the three-year revaluation cycle to reduce the gross rates bills of properties most impacted by the 2026 Revaluation. It will cap the annual increase in the amount of rates (in cash terms) payable following the 2026 Revaluation, at 15.0% for properties with a rateable value up to £20,000; 30.0% for properties with a rateable value between £20,001 and £100,000; and 50.0% for properties with a rateable value exceeding £100,000. The Transitional Relief ‘Caps’ will increase in subsequent years, resulting in an increase in later rates bills;
- a Small Business Transitional Relief Scheme will be introduced to reduce the rates bill of these ratepayers losing eligibility on 1 April 2026 for Small Business Bonus Scheme relief, rural relief, hospitality relief or 2023 Small Business Transitional Relief. Qualifying ratepayers will pay 25 per cent of any increase to their 2026-27 net rates bill, with the amount payable increasing in subsequent years.
Reliefs and Reductions
- the Small Business Bonus Scheme will be maintained in existing format for the duration of the three-year revaluation cycle, with no changes – with an exception detailed in the next point – to the qualifying limits and thresholds. Payday lenders, advertisements, car parks and betting shops remain ineligible for Small Business Bonus Scheme relief;
- eligibility to the Small Business Bonus Scheme will be amended to exclude Shootings and Deer Forests. This exclusion will not include a) shooting rights exercised solely for deer management b) crofts and c) all forms of agricultural and small landholding tenancies, leases for new entrants, and leases agreed for environmental purposes;
- business which require a Short-term Licence to operate will, from 1 April 2026, only be eligible for Small Business Bonus scheme relief if they possess such a licence;
- a 15% Retail, Hospitality and Leisure relief will be introduced for the duration of the three-year revaluation cycle. It will be limited to properties in these sectors with a Rateable Value of up to £100,000 and will be capped at £110,000 per business per annum;
- a 100% Electric Vehicle Charging-point relief will be introduced, having a duration of a ten-year period;
- from 1 April 2026 there will no longer be eligibility to Fresh Start Relief for all property categories ineligible for Small Business Bonus Scheme relief (e.g. Payday lenders and betting shops);
Notes
The content of this webpage is a summary of the information published by the Scottish Government as part of the Scottish Budget. It may be subject to change as the Budget progresses through Parliament.
Legislation underpinning all of this has yet to be published and agreed by Parliament. Once it has our website will be updated to hold application forms for the reliefs and reductions that are application based.
We will publish details of how we will administer 2026-27 Non-Domestic Rates in due course.