6. Working at home

You don’t usually have to pay business rates for home-based businesses if you:

  • use a small part of your home for your business, eg you use a bedroom as an office
  • sell goods by post

You may need to pay business rates as well as Council Tax if:

  • your property is part business and part domestic, eg if you live above your shop
  • you sell goods or services to people who visit your property
  • you employ other people to work at your property
  • you’ve made changes to your home for your business, eg converted a garage to a hairdressers

Contact the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) to find out if you should be paying business rates. In Scotland, contact your local assessor.

VOA
Telephone (England): 03000 501 501
Telephone (Wales): 03000 505 505
Find out about call charges