Commercial Rates Exemption

Many art studios, organisations and galleries are exempt from paying commercial rates on properties, however the studio or organisation renting the property needs to be registered as not-for profit. You can apply for the rates exemption through the Valuation Office. The application should include a copy of your Memorandum and Articles of Association showing that you are a not-for-profit organisation and a copy of the most recent set of audited accounts.

Most arts organisations and studios are declared exempt with the help of their local authority arts office. The Arts Officer will usually have dealings with the relevant staff within the local authority to assist. 

Alternatively you can contact the Valuation Office directly on http://www.valoff.ie to apply for revaluation and relevant fee.

Excerpts from Rates Evaluation Act 2001:

Schedule 4: Relevant Property Not Rateable

11.—Any art gallery, museum, library, park or national monument which is normally open to the general public and which is not established or maintained for the purpose of making a private profit.

17.—Any land, building or part of a building occupied by a society established for the advancement of science, literature or the fine arts and which is used exclusively for that purpose and otherwise than for private profit

There is information on this in the Arts Council guide for boards of arts organisations (Page 19): http://www.artscouncil.ie/uploadedFiles/BoardMembers-June15.pdf

There is also information on the NI Direct website pertaining to small businesses rates in Northern Ireland:  https://www.finance-ni.gov.uk/topics/property-rating/non-domestic-rating