The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016 removed the exemption from non-domestic rates that had applied to shooting rights and deer forests from 1 April 2017.   This means that shooting rights over land and deer forests are now valued for rating purposes.  We issued valuation notices for the bulk of subjects over the last week that gave the rateable value (RV) for the shootings along with an information sheet that provided background information.

The Rateable Value (RV) is not the amount payable in rates.  The actual bill, which will be issued by the local Council later this month, will be calculated by multiplying the RV by the rate in the pound (currently 46.6p for subjects with a Rateable Value less than £51,001 and 49.2p for subjects with a Rateable Value of £51,001 or more). You may not, however, be liable for this figure as there are various reliefs that may apply depending on eligibility.  Further detail on reliefs can be found at www.gov.uk/apply-for-business-rate-relief