Business affected by COVID-19 could see their Business Rates bills reduced for the 2021/22 financial year thanks to the new Covid-19 Additional Relief Fund (CARF).

CARF relief could provide an extra level of support to businesses that are still struggling as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Businesses must occupy premises with a rateable value and must have had a business rates bill to pay on 1 April 2021.

Further eligibility criteria include:

  • The business must not have been in receipt of Extended Retail Discount (covering Retail, Hospitality and Leisure), the Nursery Discount or the Airport and Ground Operations Support Scheme for the 2021/22 financial year,
  • The property must have been occupied unless closed temporarily due to the government’s advice on Covid-19,
  • The business must be able to demonstrate they have been adversely affected by the pandemic and have been unable to adequately adapt to that impact (evidence may be requested to support this),
  • The business must not have reached the subsidy allowance limit. More information on this is available on the Derby City Council website.
  • The Business Rates payer must not be Derby City Council or one of its preceptors.

More information and full eligibility criteria are available on the Derby City Council website.

Businesses will need to apply for CARF relief regardless of whether they have applied for previous schemes. Applications will need to be made on-line using MyAccount.

Businesses that have not previously used this service will need to create an account with their telephone number and email address, which can be done in minutes. Those that are already registered will need to log in using their existing email address and password.

The Government have allocated a set amount of funding. In order to ensure distribution is as fair as possible, any possible awards will not be allocated until the application period closes on Friday 11 March.

A spokesperson for Derby City Council said:

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic we have done what we can to support our businesses, whether that be through grants, rate relief or more practical measures. As we continue to navigate our way out of the pandemic and away from the challenges of the Omicron variant, we want to continue offering support where we can.

I would encourage eligible businesses to get their applications before the deadline so they don’t miss out on support that could be vital to them. To be clear, this support is not grants that are awarded to businesses but offers a temporary reduction on their business rates instead.

Applications to the Covid-19 Additional Relief Fund are open on MyAccount until 11.59pm on Friday 11 March.