Business Rates

Food and Drink Hospitality Rates Relief in Wales

Food and Drink Hospitality Rates Relief Scheme for 2026/27

 

Who will benefit from this relief?

Occupied food and drink hospitality properties for example:

• Pubs
• Restaurants
• Cafes 
• Bars 
• Live music venues  

Live music venues are properties that are wholly or mainly used for the performance of live music for the purpose of entertaining an audience. An eligible property can only be used for other activities which are ancillary or incidental to the performance of live music (e.g. the sale of food or drink to audience members) or do not affect this primary use (e.g. infrequent use of the venue as a polling station or community event). 

Many live music venues are classified as other property types which are eligible for this relief (e.g. pubs, restaurants and bars). A property is not a live music venue for the purpose of this relief if it is wholly or mainly used as a nightclub or a theatre. 

 

Who will qualify for this relief

Eligible businesses will receive a 15% reduction to their non-domestic rates net liability in 2026-27.

To qualify for the relief, the hereditament should be wholly or mainly used for the qualifying purposes. In a similar way to other reliefs, this is a test on use rather than occupation. Therefore, hereditaments that are occupied, but not wholly or mainly used for the qualifying purpose, will not qualify for the relief. 

 

Who will not qualify for this relief 

Properties not considered to be eligible for Food and Drink Hospitality Rates Relief include: 

• Those subject to the retail multiplier 
• Used wholly or mainly for the provision of living accommodation as a business (e.g. hotels, guest and boarding houses, holiday homes, and caravan parks and sites) 
• Used wholly of mainly for the sale of goods to visiting members of the public (e.g. shops, showrooms, retail warehouses and supermarkets) 
• Used wholly or mainly for the sale or provision of services to visiting members of the public (e.g. financial or professional services, salons and launderettes)
• Used wholly or mainly for sports and leisure facilities for visiting members of the public (e.g. sports centres, visitor attractions, theatres and cinemas) 
• Used wholly or mainly for the assembly of visiting members of the public (e.g. clubhouses, public halls and institutions) 
• Not usually reasonably accessible to visiting members of the public, it will be ineligible for the relief, even if there is ancillary use of the hereditament that might be considered to fall within the descriptions listed as eligible

 

Claiming Food and Drink Hospitality Rates Relief

The scheme will run from the 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027. 

The maximum cash value of the rates relief allowed, across all properties in Wales occupied by the same business should not exceed £110,000.  Businesses claiming the relief must declare that the amount being claimed does not exceed those limits.

All eligible businesses must apply for this relief by the 31 March 2027, and an application form will be available on our website from the 1 April 2026.

 

How will the Food and Drink Hospitality Rates relief be administered?

The relief will be provided as a subsidy by way of Minimal Financial Assistance (MFA). The same business must not claim more than £315,000 in total of MFA across the UK over three years (including 2026-27). The gross value of relief claimed by the same business must, therefore, not exceed £110,000 in Wales for 2026-27 (to comply with the terms of this scheme) or £315,000 from 2024-25 to 2026-27 inclusive (to comply with UK subsidy control requirements). Businesses claiming the relief must declare that the amount being claimed does not exceed those limits, before the relief can be awarded.

 

Decision making

Officers of the Council’s Revenues and benefits service will check each application against the guidance issued by Welsh Government. Further information can be found on: Non-Domestic Rates – Food and Drink Hospitality Rates Relief 2026-27 | Business Wales (opens in a new tab) .

Any successful application for the relief will be awarded for the period 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027 and will be shown on the non-domestic rating demand.

 

Review of the decision

Disallowance of the relief will be notified by email. 

Any request for a review against the disallowance must be made in writing and within one calendar month of being notified of the decision.

The request will be considered by a person other than the person who made the original decision.

 

Fraudulent claims and overpayments

Welsh Government and Pembrokeshire County Council will not tolerate any business falsifying their records or providing false evidence to gain this relief, including claiming support above the £110,000 cap or the exemption threshold.

A business that falsely applies for any relief or provides false information or makes false representations in order to gain relief may be guilty of fraud under the Fraud Act 2006 and subject to legal action in addition to having all Food and Drink Hospitality Rates Relief removed from all of their properties for 2026-27.