Enterprises that pay business rates are being encouraged to check their current property valuation and make sure the details held by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) are correct.
If you believe your valuation is wrong, you have until 31 March 2026 to request any changes to your current valuation.
After that, a new rating list comes into effect on 1 April, and you will only be able to request changes to your new 2026 valuation from that date.
To request any changes, you need a business rates valuation account. If you haven’t used yours recently, it’s worth checking that you can still log in. The verification process to claim a property can take up to 15 working days, so it’s sensible not to leave this until the last minute.
You will need a Government Gateway user ID or a One Login account to sign in to your account.
Support is available on GOV.UK for anyone needing help with registration.
See: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/deadline-for-challenging-your-business-rates-valuation
For the first time, government departments have set individual targets for how much they will spend with small and medium-sized businesses (SME). In total, the government plans to spend £7.4 billion a year with SMEs by 2028.
For shareholders of owner-managed companies, dividends are still one of the most tax-efficient ways to take money out of the company. But with these increases coming in, it will be worth taking a fresh look at your extraction strategy.