Valuation Office Agency VOA
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) gives the UK government valuations and property advice to support taxation and benefits, both at the national level and for local authorities in England, Wales and Scotland. It is an executive agency of HM Revenue & Customs and employs more than 3,600 staff, also providing valuation and surveying services to public sector bodies.
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) was established on 30 September 1991 as a Next Steps Agency of the Inland Revenue. It was formed from the merger of the Valuation Office organisations in England, Wales and in Scotland. It is now an executive agency of Her ( His ) Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
The VOA’s work covers the following areas:
- Domestic council tax - compiling and maintaining lists of council tax bands for 26 million domestic properties.
- Non-domestic rating - compiling and maintaining lists detailing the rateable value of 2.1 million commercial properties for business rates.
- Advice - advising ministers on valuation, property matters and benefits.
- Valuations - providing independent and impartial valuation and professional property advice across the public sector.
- Community Infrastructure Levy - decides appeals against the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL).
- Right to Buy - provides determinations of value for Right to Buy (RTB) in England and Wales.
- Rent Officers - determining Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates across England, advising local authorities of the maximum subsidy level payable for housing benefit claims under the local reference rent system and maintaining a register of fair rents for regulated tenancies in England.
- Customer Charter - explains how they work in collaboration to deliver professional and expert customer services experience.
For further information visit the VOA website directly here.
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