Explanatory note

Section 49A of the Local Government Finance Act 1988, as inserted by section 71 of the Localism Act 2011, provides that the Secretary of State may make provision through regulations for the cancellation of certain backdated non-domestic rates liabilities. Section 49A also provides that the regulations only apply in relation to a non-domestic hereditament shown in a non-domestic rating list compiled on 1st April 2010, and which is shown for that day as the result of an alteration of the list made after the list was compiled.

These Regulations prescribe the cases to which the cancellation applies. Regulation 3 provides that the chargeable amount for a chargeable day within the qualifying period is zero, where a hereditament is either a qualifying hereditament, so meeting the conditions in regulation 4, or a hereditament in relation to which the conditions in regulation 5 are met (and the ratepayer meets certain conditions). Regulation 6 makes provision as to the circumstances when an alteration of a list is a relevant list alteration. Regulation 7 makes provision as to the meaning of predecessor hereditament for the purposes of the Regulations.

An Impact Assessment produced for the Localism Act 2011 can be found at: http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/localgovernment/localismnondomrates. No separate Impact Assessment has been prepared for these Regulations.