Furnished Holiday Let / council tax / when to register

kernow1234

Hello all, and as always, thanks in advance 
I've recently listed a house on Airbnb - last September, to be precise.
I'm aware that it must be available to let for 210 days and actually let for 105 days to qualify as an FHL.
Does this mean that I must wait until these conditions are met (most likely after the summer season) before acting?
And is it only at that point I should inform the council re changing from council tax to business rates, and once accepted, would they refund the previous 210 days council tax paid, or does the council tax obligation only cease at the point after the 105/210 condition is met?
Thanks very much!

anselld

No you do not need to wait until the 105/210 condition is met in full.

You can evidence that it is advertised (AirBnB listing etc) straight away and provide evidence of actual bookings to date at the point of application.

It takes about 3 months for the VOA to pontificate but once they decide the change will be backdated.

I would apply now and tell them you started from last September (which you can evidence).

 

kernow1234

Great! Thanks very much for that info - I've called the local council and filled in the form

lincroft1710

anselld said:

It takes about 3 months for the VOA to pontificate but once they decide the change will be backdated.

 

The actual decision probably takes less than an hour, possibly just a few minutes.


What takes the time is how quickly the council informs the VOA, how long it takes the case to get to the top of the VOA caseworker's pile, whether it needs inspecting or if communication is needed with the owner  (from personal experience, they are not always truthful) and finally updating both the Valuation List and Non Domestic Rating List (which is probably only done once a month) 

anselld

kernow1234 said:

Great! Thanks very much for that info - I've called the local council and filled in the form

No problem.  Once the listing change is done you will get a letter from the VOA and a Business Rates bill.  That is the point at which you can apply for small business rates relief.  CT will eventually catch up with a refund.

gazfocus

Also just a word of warning, you might need to apply for planning permission for change of use. We enquired with our council about this and were told that we would need to apply for a ‘Certificate of Lawfulness for a Proposed Use’ but they said that such a certificate would not be easy to get. 

anselld

gazfocus said:

Also just a word of warning, you might need to apply for planning permission for change of use. We enquired with our council about this and were told that we would need to apply for a ‘Certificate of Lawfulness for a Proposed Use’ but they said that such a certificate would not be easy to get. 

FHL does not classify as change of use.  It is still c3.  London has some specific limits on the number of days allowed but outside that I dont think there are restrictions.  Some Councils may be concerned if it amounts to a backdoor HMO ( 3+ unrelated sharers) under a local licensing scheme, but that is a different issue.

anselld

Actually, you dont even need to apply via the Council.  The request for business rates valuation can be sent directly to the VOA on this form ...

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/self-catering-holiday-homes-questionnaire

gazfocus

anselld said:

gazfocus said:

Also just a word of warning, you might need to apply for planning permission for change of use. We enquired with our council about this and were told that we would need to apply for a ‘Certificate of Lawfulness for a Proposed Use’ but they said that such a certificate would not be easy to get. 

FHL does not classify as change of use.  It is still c3.  London has some specific limits on the number of days allowed but outside that I dont think there are restrictions.  Some Councils may be concerned if it amounts to a backdoor HMO ( 3+ unrelated sharers) under a local licensing scheme, but that is a different issue.

anselld said:

Actually, you dont even need to apply via the Council.  The request for business rates valuation can be sent directly to the VOA on this form ...

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/self-catering-holiday-homes-questionnaire

Can you share a link where I can read about FHL not needing change of use as our council have said what I quoted above. I wonder if it's area specific? The area we are in is Blackpool so I wonder if they have different rules perhaps?

anselld

gazfocus said:

anselld said:

gazfocus said:

Also just a word of warning, you might need to apply for planning permission for change of use. We enquired with our council about this and were told that we would need to apply for a ‘Certificate of Lawfulness for a Proposed Use’ but they said that such a certificate would not be easy to get. 

FHL does not classify as change of use.  It is still c3.  London has some specific limits on the number of days allowed but outside that I dont think there are restrictions.  Some Councils may be concerned if it amounts to a backdoor HMO ( 3+ unrelated sharers) under a local licensing scheme, but that is a different issue.

anselld said:

Actually, you dont even need to apply via the Council.  The request for business rates valuation can be sent directly to the VOA on this form ...

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/self-catering-holiday-homes-questionnaire

Can you share a link where I can read about FHL not needing change of use as our council have said what I quoted above. I wonder if it's area specific? The area we are in is Blackpool so I wonder if they have different rules perhaps?

This seems a decent summary, it is perhaps a bit more nuanced than I implied earlier ...

https://parissmith.co.uk/blog/planning-permission-for-holiday-lets/

Not sure about special rules in Blackpool.  There is a suplementary planning document on managing holiday accomodation but it seems more about restricting the conversion of holiday accomodation back to residential.

gazfocus

Thanks for that, super helpful. 

Yeh I’d read the document about managing holiday accommodation but as you say, I think that’s more about turning a hotel etc into a residential property.

Will see if I can find anything specific on the Blackpool council site.