Business Rates Guidance for Wales Self-Catering Properties

Guidance

Apply for business rates for a self-catering property in Wales

Fill in this form if you have a self-catering holiday let in Wales that is eligible for business rates.

From: HM Revenue & Customs and Valuation Office Agency Published 8 October 2025 Last updated 1 April 2026
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Applies to Wales

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When you can apply

From 1 April 2026, all the following must be true for your property to be eligible for business rates:

• it was available to let commercially (with the intention of making a profit) for 252 nights within the last 12 months
• it was actually let commercially for 182 nights within the last 12 months, or for an average of 182 nights per 12 months over the last 24 or 36 months
• you intend to make it available to let commercially for at least 252 nights in the following 12 months Your property may be moved from business rates to Council Tax if it stops meeting the criteria.

Fill in a different form if your property is in England.

Nights you can include

You can include all nights your property was:

• available to let commercially for stays of 28 nights or less
• actually let commercially for stays of 28 nights or less From 1 April 2026 you can also include up to 14 nights per year that you donated to a registered charity.

Nights you cannot include

When calculating the nights your property was available to let or actually let, you cannot include:

• nights that your property was closed for repair or refurbishment
• nights that the site where the property is located was closed
• nights you were using the property privately, including letting it to friends or family for a discounted rate
• future bookings that have not happened yet Stays over 28 nights are not classed as short-term lets. You cannot count them as nights your property was let.

You cannot include nights you donated to a registered charity before 1 April 2026.

How to fill in the form

You can fill in the form on-screen or print the form and fill it in.

Fill in one form for each eligible self-catering property.

Apply for business rates for a self-catering property in Wales

PDF, 249 KB, 4 pages

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Where to send the form

Attach the completed form to an email. Send it to selfcatering@voa.gov.uk using the subject heading ‘Self-catering application — Wales’.

If you prefer, you can send the completed form by post to:

Valuation Officer
Wycliffe House
Green Lane
Durham
DH1 3UW

Updates to this page

Published 8 October 2025 Last updated 1 April 2026 show all updates
1.
1 April 2026

Information has been added to the section 'When you can apply' about using the average nights let across 2 or 3 years. Information has been added to the section 'Nights you can include' about donating nights to charity.
2.
8 October 2025

Added translation

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