If you run a restaurant, café or takeaway in England, your business rates bill went up on 1 April 2026 — and for most independents it went up by more than the energy and wage rises put together. The average hospitality property will pay £23,961 in rates in 2026-27, an increase of £3,126 (15%) on the year before, according to trade body UKHospitality (UKHospitality, 2025). Two things hit at once: a national revaluation of every property, and the winding-down of the relief that has cushioned hospitality bills since the pandemic.
This guide explains what changed, what you'll actually pay, the relief you can still claim, and exactly how to check and challenge your bill if the number looks wrong. Rates are a cost you can't switch supplier on — but it's one of the few where a free 20-minute check can knock thousands off.
Key takeaways
- The average England hospitality rates bill rises to £23,961 in 2026-27 — up £3,126 (15%) — and UKHospitality projects it reaching £40,409 by 2028-29 (UKHospitality, 2025).
- Two changes landed together on 1 April 2026: a revaluation (new rateable values based on April 2024 rents) and the end of the 40% retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) relief, replaced by permanently lower multipliers (GOV.UK).
- The 2026-27 RHL multipliers are 38.2p (rateable value under £51,000) and 43.0p (£51,000–£499,999) — lower than the national 43.2p/48.0p, but no longer the 60% discount the old relief gave (GOV.UK, 2025).
- If your rateable value is £12,000 or less you pay nothing; £12,001–£15,000 gets tapered relief (GOV.UK).
- You can Check, Challenge and Appeal your rateable value through the Valuation Office Agency — the appeal fee (£150 or £300) is refunded if you win (Valuation Tribunal Service).
- Rates are devolved: Scotland keeps a 40% hospitality relief, Wales cut its relief to 15%, and Northern Ireland runs a separate system.
What changed for business rates in 2026?
Two separate things happened on the same day, which is why bills jumped so sharply.
A revaluation. Business rates are based on a "rateable value" — broadly, the open-market annual rent your premises could let for. The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) reassesses every commercial property periodically; the latest revaluation came into effect on 1 April 2026 and is based on rental values from 1 April 2024 (GOV.UK). Because hospitality rents in many high streets and city centres rose between the previous valuation date and April 2024, plenty of restaurants saw their rateable value climb.
The end of RHL relief. Since the pandemic, eligible retail, hospitality and leisure properties have received a temporary discount on their bills: 75% relief in 2024-25, cut to 40% in 2025-26 (GOV.UK, 2025). From 2026-27 that percentage discount is gone. In its place the government introduced permanently lower "RHL multipliers" — a smaller, structural discount baked into the calculation rather than a headline percentage knocked off the bill. The net effect for most venues is a higher bill, because a few pence off the multiplier is worth far less than 40% off the total.
It's worth being precise about this, because the change is easy to misread. You haven't lost relief and kept the old rate — the rate itself changed. The old 40% discount on a £20,000 bill was worth £8,000; the new lower multiplier is worth a few hundred pounds on the same property.
How much more will you actually pay?
UKHospitality modelled the combined effect across England and the trajectory is steep. The average hospitality property's rates bill rises from £20,835 to £23,961 in 2026-27 (the +£3,126 / +15% figure), then to £30,849 in 2027-28 and £40,409 in 2028-29 — a total increase of £32,714 over three years (UKHospitality, 2025).
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Those are sector averages, not your bill — a small café with a low rateable value will pay a fraction of that, and a prime-pitch restaurant far more. But the direction is the point: this is a rising cost, not a one-off. Treat the 2026-27 figure as the new baseline and plan for it climbing again next April.
For context, business rates now sit alongside the other overheads squeezing margins from every side — the April 2026 energy-charge shock, rising food costs and higher wage bills. Rates are the one on this list you can formally dispute.
How are business rates calculated?
The sum itself is simple:
Rateable value × the multiplier = your annual rates bill (before any relief).
Your rateable value is set by the VOA and printed on your bill — you can also look it up free on GOV.UK. The multiplier (sometimes called the "poundage") is set by central government each year. For 2026-27 in England there are five (GOV.UK, 2025):
| Multiplier | Rate (pence per £) | Applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Small business RHL | 38.2p | RHL property, rateable value under £51,000 |
| Standard RHL | 43.0p | RHL property, rateable value £51,000–£499,999 |
| National small business | 43.2p | Non-RHL property under £51,000 |
| National standard | 48.0p | Non-RHL property £51,000–£499,999 |
| High value | 50.8p | Any property with rateable value £500,000 or more |
Most independent restaurants and cafés are "RHL" property (shops, restaurants, cafés, pubs, live-music venues all qualify), so you'll use one of the first two rows. A venue with a £40,000 rateable value, for example, pays roughly £40,000 × 38.2p = £15,280 before any small-business relief is applied.
One thing worth doing: check which multiplier your bill actually used. Billing errors happen, and a property mistakenly charged at the national rate instead of the lower RHL rate is overpaying.
What relief can you still claim in 2026?
The 40% RHL discount is gone, but three other reliefs still matter — and councils don't always apply them automatically.
Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR). This is the big one for independents. If your property's rateable value is £12,000 or less and it's the only property your business uses, you pay no business rates at all. For a rateable value between £12,001 and £15,000, relief tapers gradually from 100% down to 0% (GOV.UK). Crucially, any property with a rateable value below £51,000 is billed using the lower small-business multiplier, even if it doesn't qualify for the cash discount. SBRR is not always granted automatically — if you think you qualify and it isn't on your bill, contact your local council.
The RHL multipliers. As above, these are now the structural hospitality discount — applied to your bill rather than claimed, but worth confirming you've been put on the right one.
Transitional relief. Where a revaluation causes a large jump in your bill, transitional arrangements phase the increase in over time rather than letting it land in a single year. This is normally applied automatically by the billing authority — check your bill shows it if your rateable value rose sharply.
A quick rule of thumb: if your rateable value is under £15,000, your priority is making sure SBRR is applied. If it's higher, your priority is checking the valuation itself is correct — which is where the appeal process comes in.
How to check and challenge your rateable value
If the rateable value looks too high — and after a revaluation, plenty do — you can formally dispute it. England uses a three-stage process run by the VOA, called Check, Challenge, Appeal (Valuation Tribunal Service):
- Check. Register for a business rates account on GOV.UK and confirm the facts the VOA holds about your property — floor area, use, features. Roughly a third of disputes are resolved here simply because the underlying data is wrong (an outdated floor area, a since-removed mezzanine).
- Challenge. If the facts are right but you believe the valuation is still too high, submit a challenge with your evidence — comparable rents, lease terms, the actual rent you pay. The VOA reviews and issues a decision.
- Appeal. If you disagree with the VOA's challenge decision, you can appeal to the independent Valuation Tribunal. You must do this within four months of the VOA's decision (Valuation Tribunal Service).
The appeal stage carries a fee — £150 for smaller proposers, £300 otherwise — and it's refunded in full if your appeal succeeds. Even if you lose but the case is decided without a hearing, £50 (or £100) is refunded. And if the VOA fails to issue its challenge decision within 18 months, the appeal is free (Valuation Tribunal Service).
Two practical warnings. First, keep paying your existing bill while you dispute it — an open challenge does not pause what's due, and you'll be refunded any overpayment if you win. Second, be wary of cold-calling "rates reduction agents" who promise guaranteed savings for an upfront fee; you can run a Check yourself for free, and the VOA publishes guidance on choosing a reputable agent if you'd rather not.
What about Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland?
Business rates are devolved, so the England figures above don't apply across the UK.
- Scotland. Eligible licensed hospitality premises and music venues — including pubs, restaurants and nightclubs — get 40% rates relief from 2026-27 to 2028-29, capped at £110,000 per business, for properties with a rateable value up to and including £100,000 (some remote rural areas are excluded) (mygov.scot).
- Wales. Retail, leisure and hospitality relief was cut from 40% to 15% for 2026-27 and narrowed to food-and-drink hospitality, with a £110,000 cap per business across all your Welsh properties (Business Wales, 2025).
- Northern Ireland. Rates work differently again, combining a regional and a district rate; check nidirect and Land & Property Services for your figure.
If you operate in more than one nation, treat each site under its own regime — the relief and multipliers genuinely differ.
The costs you can't appeal — and the ones you can
Rates, like the energy standing charges hitting hospitality this year, are a fixed cost of holding your premises. You can't negotiate the multiplier. But you can make sure your rateable value is correct, claim every relief you're entitled to, and stop the controllable costs — delivery commissions, payment fees, an unprofitable menu — from compounding the squeeze.
The more revenue you keep directly, the more headroom you have to absorb a rates rise you can't avoid. A commission-free ordering page on your own site, for instance, keeps the cut an aggregator would take. Tools like DineHere exist to make that direct channel cheap to run — but the first, free move this year is simply checking your rates bill is right.
Frequently asked questions
When did the 2026 business rates changes take effect?
The revaluation and the new multipliers both came into effect on 1 April 2026 for England. The new rateable values are based on open-market rents as at 1 April 2024 (GOV.UK).
Why has my restaurant's business rates bill gone up so much?
Two changes landed together: the revaluation reset your rateable value, and the 40% retail, hospitality and leisure relief ended, replaced by lower multipliers worth far less than the old discount (GOV.UK, 2025).
How much will the average restaurant pay in rates in 2026?
UKHospitality estimates the average England hospitality property will pay £23,961 in 2026-27, up £3,126 (15%) on the previous year (UKHospitality, 2025). Your own bill depends on your rateable value and reliefs.
What are the 2026-27 business rates multipliers?
For retail, hospitality and leisure property in England: 38.2p for rateable values under £51,000 and 43.0p for £51,000–£499,999. The national multipliers are 43.2p and 48.0p, and 50.8p applies above £500,000 (GOV.UK, 2025).
Do small restaurants pay any business rates?
If your only property has a rateable value of £12,000 or less, you pay nothing under Small Business Rate Relief; between £12,001 and £15,000 the relief tapers from 100% to 0% (GOV.UK).
How do I appeal my business rates?
Use the VOA's Check, Challenge, Appeal process: confirm the property facts, challenge the valuation with evidence, then appeal to the Valuation Tribunal within four months of the VOA's decision if you still disagree (Valuation Tribunal Service).
How much does it cost to appeal business rates?
The appeal fee is £150 for smaller proposers or £300 otherwise, and it's fully refunded if you win. A partial refund (£50/£100) applies if you lose without a hearing, and the appeal is free if the VOA hasn't decided your challenge within 18 months (Valuation Tribunal Service).
Should I keep paying my bill while I appeal?
Yes. An open challenge or appeal does not suspend the rates due. Keep paying; if you win, you're refunded the overpayment.
Are business rates the same across the UK?
No — rates are devolved. Scotland retains a 40% hospitality relief, Wales cut its relief to 15% for 2026-27, and Northern Ireland uses a separate system entirely (mygov.scot; Business Wales).
Will business rates rise again after 2026?
UKHospitality projects the average hospitality bill rising further — to roughly £30,849 in 2027-28 and £40,409 in 2028-29 — so plan for rates as a climbing cost, not a one-off (UKHospitality, 2025).
