Pub and live music venues relief
The Government announced the Pub and Live Music Venues Relief scheme in January 2026. This gives eligible properties 15% off their business rates bill for the 2026/27 financial year.
If your property is used as a pub or a live music venue, you may be able to get this relief.
What counts as a pub?
Your property must:
- be open to the public
- allow free entry (except for occasional entertainment)
- allow people to drink without needing to buy food
- sell drinks at a bar.
The following do not count as pubs:
- restaurants or cafés
- nightclubs or snack bars
- hotels, guesthouses or boarding houses
- sports venues
- festival sites
- theatres or cinemas
- museums or exhibition halls
- casinos.
What counts as a live music venue?
Your property must:
- be mainly used for live music performances
- provide live music to entertain an audience.
It can host other activities, but only if:
- they are incidental to live music (for example, selling food or drink to the audience); and
- they do not change the main use of the venue. For example, an occasional polling station or a community event every few weeks.
How the relief is applied
Many eligible properties already have the relief added to their 2026/27 business rates bill.
If you believe you should get the relief but cannot see it on your bill, you can apply.