Author Topic: Council Tax (Read 5366 times)

Templelands · « **on:** May 01, 2012, 09:13:45 pm »

Hi All

Do Smallholders pay Council Tax or Business rates or both?

Cheers!

doganjo · « **Reply #1 on:** May 01, 2012, 09:20:39 pm »

Council Tax - it is your home for the most part.

Business rates are raised purely on business premises.

A smallholding is not purely a business premises.

I'm not sure what the position is if the land is totally separate from the housing unit though.

bazzais · « **Reply #2 on:** May 01, 2012, 09:26:58 pm »

Council Tax

If they are after business rates then post more details.

robert waddell · « **Reply #3 on:** May 01, 2012, 09:51:51 pm »

it is council tax BUT if there is a conversion to offices or work units and horse livery/riding arena a lot disappear after getting hit with a rates bill

lachlanandmarcus · « **Reply #4 on:** May 01, 2012, 10:35:56 pm »

Basically if you have clients visiting regularly and/or have areas which are specific to business use then you will get hit with business rates. If not to both you are prob ok. eg at a livery yard the box for the yard owners own horse and never used for livery horses can be excluded from business rates but the rest would be assessed/charged.

Small Farmer · « **Reply #5 on:** May 01, 2012, 11:10:29 pm »

Note that

- there is a bunch of tax rules specific to farming

- that even HMRC won't allow you to set-off losses unless you have to have the prospect of making a profit at some point - most smallholders on this forum seem to be lifestyle rather than profit focused. If you aren't a business for HMRC purposes then you aren't running a business from the premises.

- and that if you allocate any part of your home exclusively for business use that part could become chargeable for CGT should you make a profit when you sell the house. Spreading your files across the kitchen table is tax planning not mess!

Watch out for planning change of use because it has lots of undesirable ramifications. You're most likely to draw attention to yourself if you increase road traffic.

Kimberlyz · « **Reply #6 on:** May 02, 2012, 08:06:41 am »

Generally speaking, every part (or room) of a property will need to be classified as domestic or non-domestic. As such, any area that has business (or non-domestic) use is liable for business rates, and any area that has domestic use is liable for council tax. That can mean a single building overall can be liable for both, known as a 'composite' property. If, however, there are areas no longer in use, then these will have to be classified at their last usage.