Tax Explained
Small Business Bonus Scheme Explained
The Small Business Bonus Scheme (SBBS) is Scotland's main non-domestic rates relief. It can remove a business rates bill entirely for smaller premises, but it is administered by your local council rather than HMRC — which is why it is so often missed.
Quick answer
What are the key takeaways?
Premises with a rateable value up to £12,000 get 100% relief and pay no non-domestic rates at all.
Key takeaways
Premises with a rateable value up to £12,000 get 100% relief and pay no non-domestic rates at all.
Relief tapers from 100% to 25% between £12,001 and £15,000, then from 25% to 0% between £15,001 and £20,000.
You must occupy premises with a combined rateable value of £35,000 or less, and no single property above £20,000.
The property must be actively occupied, and short-term lets need a valid short-term let licence to qualify.
SBBS is claimed through your local council — in Glasgow, Glasgow City Council — not through HMRC or your tax return.
What relief does the Small Business Bonus Scheme give?
If you occupy a single property with a rateable value of £12,000 or less, SBBS gives 100% relief — you pay no non-domestic rates. Between £12,001 and £15,000 the relief tapers down from 100% to 25%, and between £15,001 and £20,000 it tapers from 25% to nil.
For a Glasgow office, salon, workshop or small retail unit sitting near the bottom of those bands, that is frequently the single largest fixed cost a business can legitimately remove. Because the taper is gradual rather than a cliff edge, a small change in rateable value changes the bill gradually rather than all at once.
Who qualifies, and what are the limits?
Two tests apply together. The combined rateable value of all the business premises you occupy in Scotland must be £35,000 or less, and each individual property must have a rateable value of £20,000 or less. Exceed either and the relief is lost.
The property must also be actively occupied. Empty property is dealt with under separate empty property relief, not SBBS. Since the 2023 reforms, a short-term let property must hold a valid short-term let licence before it can receive SBBS at all.
How does it work if you occupy more than one property?
Where you occupy several premises, the relief is assessed on the combined rateable value. Up to £12,000 combined, you receive 100% relief. Between £12,001 and £15,000 combined, you receive 25% relief on each individual property with a rateable value of £15,000 or less.
Between £15,001 and £35,000 combined, relief tapers from 25% to nil for individual properties valued between £15,001 and £20,000. Multi-site operators — a café group, a chain of salons, a trades business with two yards — should model this before signing a second lease, because an extra unit can reduce relief across the whole estate.
Who sets the rateable value, and can you challenge it?
Rateable values in Scotland are set by the Scottish Assessors, independently of both the council and the Scottish Government. Your council uses that figure to calculate the bill and to apply reliefs; it does not decide the valuation itself.
If your rateable value looks wrong — the floor area is overstated, the property has changed use, or part of it is unusable — the valuation can be challenged through the Assessor. Because SBBS has hard thresholds at £12,000, £15,000, £20,000 and £35,000, a successful challenge that moves you across a threshold can be worth far more than the change in valuation alone suggests.
How does SBBS interact with your accounts and tax?
Non-domestic rates are a deductible business expense, so relief reduces the expense rather than creating taxable income. Removing a rates bill increases taxable profit, which in turn affects corporation tax or income tax — worth planning for rather than discovering at year end.
SBBS is also one of the reliefs most often left unclaimed when a business moves premises, incorporates or takes on a second unit, because the entitlement has to be re-established rather than carrying over automatically.
Questions
What do people ask about small business bonus scheme?
These answers cover the practical points clients commonly raise before asking Countify to review their own position.
Ask a different questionYou have to apply through your local council. It is not applied automatically and it does not carry over when you move premises or change the occupying entity, which is the most common reason Scottish businesses find they have been paying rates they did not owe.
A rateable value of £12,000 or less gives 100% relief on a single property, meaning no non-domestic rates are payable. Above that, relief tapers to 25% at £15,000 and to nil at £20,000.
No. The property must be actively occupied. Unoccupied premises are considered under separate empty property relief rules, which are less generous and time-limited.
Only if it holds a valid short-term let licence. Since the 2023 reforms, an unlicensed short-term let cannot receive SBBS even where the rateable value would otherwise qualify.
No. Small Business Rate Relief applies in England and has different thresholds. SBBS is the Scottish scheme, administered by Scottish councils using rateable values set by the Scottish Assessors. Guidance written for England does not apply to a Glasgow business.
Yes. Countify can check your rateable values against the thresholds, review whether occupying a second property would reduce relief across your estate, and factor the rates position into your profit and tax forecast.
Related advice
Which advice should you read next?
These related guides connect the next practical questions around this topic.
Director Responsibilities
Directors have statutory duties under the Companies Act 2006, including acting in the company's best interests and avoiding conflicts of interest.
Short-term lets
You must hold a short-term let licence before taking bookings or receiving guests. A licence usually lasts three years.
Related tools
Which calculator can help you estimate the numbers?
Use these tools for quick estimates before asking Countify to review the facts.
Related reading
Where can you read more UK tax updates?
Countify's blog covers practical updates for individuals, landlords and business owners.
Get started
Take control of your
numbers today.
Free, no-obligation consultation. We agree the fee upfront — no surprises.
- Expert advice
- Fixed fees
- Fast response