Retail Hospitality and Leisure Multiplier 2026-27

From 1 April 2026 the government will introduce two lower business rates multipliers for Retail Hospitality and Leisure (RHL) properties with rateable values (RVs) below £500,000:

Small business RHL multiplier – for RHL properties with RVs under £51,000 - 38.2p
Standard RHL multiplier – for RHL properties with RVs between £51,000 and £499,999 - 43.0p

You can find all multipliers for 2026/27 on our website at Business Rates Multiplier.

Only rating assessments that are wholly or mainly used for a qualifying purpose (see more details below) can get the RHL multipliers.

Qualifying criteria for the multiplier

The following checkboxes are used for accordion drop-downs. When selected, they show content that was visually hidden

(a) The premises must be used for:

(i) the retail sale or hire of goods, or

(ii) the provision of a service,

where the sale, hire, or provision of the service is to visiting members of the public;

(b) use for the sale of food or drink, where the food or drink is for consumption on or off the property by visiting members of the public;

(c) use as a hotel or as a boarding or guest house by members of the public, provided that no significant element of nursing care is provided as part of the services provided by the hotel, boarding house or guest house;

(d) use as a caravan park, campsite, self-catering accommodation or holiday home by members of the public;

(e) use for the provision of cultural, community or recreational facilities, to visiting members of the public

HM Treasury non-exhaustive list of properties that are within scope of RHL

The following checkboxes are used for accordion drop-downs. When selected, they show content that was visually hidden

Shops
Supermarkets
Charity shops
Shopping centres
Motorway service stations
Florists
Bakers
Butchers
Grocers
Greengrocers
Jewellers
Stationers
Off licences
Chemists
Opticians
Newsagents
Hardware stores
Markets
Petrol stations
Garden centres
Furniture shops/display rooms
Car/caravan show rooms (including those for second-hand vehicles)
Art galleries where art is for sale/hire
Premises from which domestic goods are hired
Premises from which tools are hired
Premises from which cars are hired
Premises from which bicycles are hired

Funeral directors
Launderettes
Hair and beauty salons (for instance, hairdressers, nail bars, beauty salons, tanning shops, salons carrying out non-surgical cosmetic procedures, and salons carrying out piercings)
Tattooists
Garages
Shoe repairers
Key cutters
Dry cleaners
PC/TV/Domestic appliance repairers
Photo processers
Post offices (excluding post office sorting offices and post depots where customers can only collect missed deliveries)
Travel agents
Ticket offices (e.g. for the theatre)
Animal grooming parlours/stabling of animals (unless stabling working animals, such as professional racehorses, as these would not be open to visiting members of the public)

Live music venues
Nightclubs
Cinemas
Theatres
Libraries
Museums
Galleries
Archives
Stately homes/historic houses
Tourist information centres
Public halls/village halls
Venues for hire for events or activities, where the events and activities are principally for the benefit of visiting members of the public
Premises used wholly or mainly for meetings by voluntary associations
Premises used by youth groups for meetings and activities, such as scout huts
Premises used for lectures or lessons undertaken for recreational purposes (such as art classes, pottery classes, language lessons and performing arts classes)
Sport and leisure facilities, such as gyms, sports grounds, and sports clubs
Health spas, wellness centres, and massage parlours
Casinos, gambling clubs, and bingo halls
Theme parks
Soft play centres
Marinas, wharfs, piers and jetties (when used wholly or mainly for recreational purposes)
Premises used for activities such as bowling, laser tag, paintballing, escape rooms, and miniature golf
Zoos
Swimming pools (unless exclusively used by professional athletes, as these would not be open to visiting members of the public)
Skating rinks (unless exclusively used by professional athletes, as these would not be open to visiting members of the public)

Uses that are not eligible for the RHL multiplier

The following checkboxes are used for accordion drop-downs. When selected, they show content that was visually hidden

Wholesale sales and hire of goods
Financial services (such as banks, building societies, cash points, bureaux de change, short-term loan providers, insurance agents, financial advisers)
Medical and health services (such as medicine, dentistry, audiology/hearing services, cosmetic surgery, physiotherapy, osteopathy, chiropractic services, acupuncture, herbal medicine)
Professional services (such as law, accountancy, tax advice, management consultancy, engineering services, architectural or surveying services, veterinary services, estate agency work, letting agency work)
Storage and distribution of goods for online sales (i.e. warehouses)
Nursing homes, children’s homes, and respite care facilities
Recording studios and film studios for business or professional use
Crematoria
Taxi/minicab firms
Show homes
Conference centres
Betting shops
Postal sorting offices
Citizens’ advice bureaus
Job centres
Car parks
Public transport properties other than bicycle docking stations (such as bus/coach stations, bus/tram shelters, railway stations, tramway stations, airports, ferry ports, riverboat services, including piers used for river services)
Schools, creches, nurseries, colleges, and universities (as they are not open to visiting members of the public)
Properties used for the production of alcohol (such as breweries), unless wholly or mainly open to visiting members of the public (e.g. mainly used as a bar and/or providing tours to the public, which the production of alcohol being ancillary to this)
Film and theatre production companies (as they are not open to visiting members of the public)

If you feel your business fits the criteria for the multiplier, you can apply by filling in our form.

You can still receive the RHL multiplier if you receive Small Business Rate Relief, Supporting Small Business Rate Relief, Mandatory Rate Relief, Discretionary Rate Relief or Rural Rate Relief.