‘Unfair’ business staircase tax to be reversed

THE Government has begun the process of reversing the so-called “staircase tax” in order to ease the burden on business owners.

Sajid Javid, the Communities Secretary, will today publish draft legislation to reverse the tax, which is expected to benefit up to a thousand firms.

Companies that occupied more than one floor but that used a communal staircase between floors had been taxed as if they occupied separate properties, barring them from accessing rates relief payments, which they could only qualify for if they owned one property. As a result of a Supreme Court ruling on the issue in August many businesses were facing significant bills backdated to April 2015, but these will now be written off.

Under today’s new legislation, firms can choose to have their rates recalculated under the old single-bill system and any savings due will be backdated. Mr Javid said that the tax was “an unfair rates hike for businesses”.

Meanwhile, two senior judges have criticised the number of business rates appeals that have been thrown out by the Government’s Valuation Tribunal amid concerns that the system is crippling small businesses in particular.

A recent case heard in the Upper Tribunal highlighted that almost a quarter of appeals made by ratepayers against their last business rates valuation have been struck out on what some consider a minor technicality. The case, which had been brought by property firm Colliers, was heard by Sir David Holgate and Martin Rodger, who are respectively president and deputy president of the Lands Chamber court.

In their judgment, they criticised the Valuation Tribunal for England, the judicial body for business rates appeals, and the Valuation Office Agency, which administers business rates for the Government, for dismissing cases over minor breaches of procedure.