Rates assessments will be based on rental values at April 1, 2003, which means retailers should brace themselves for substantial increases - the five years from 1998 to 2003 saw a steady growth in retail rents.
Because retail is the one sector of the property industry that has prospered in the first half of this decade, retailers are going to have to shoulder a bigger proportion of the nation's rates bill during the second half of the decade.
Office rents have fallen and industrial rents are static at best, but because the Government needs to retain the same level of revenue from the UBR, it will have to squeeze retail to make up for the shortfall elsewhere.
Publication of the valuation list marks the start of the appeals process.
It is worth casting a critical eye over the assessments to see if there are any anomalies that can be exploited at appeal.
It is also worth getting a professional to do it for you.
David Hudson, director at business rate specialist LSM Partners, has expressed concern that the profusion of cowboy rates advisers offering duff advice at previous revaluations means businesses are becoming increasingly reluctant to seek professional help over their rates bills.
The only winner from this sort of foolishness is the tax man. Don't just hire the first person who sends you a spam e-mail or a bulk fax offering rating advice - it only takes a phone call to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors to obtain a list of suitably qualified and regulated rating advisers.
Armed with the list, start shopping around. Most organisations should work on an incentive fee - the more they save you in rates reductions the more they deserve to be paid. If your case is that strong, try for a no-win no-fee arrangement.
With the Christmas trading period looming and businesses under pressure generally, it is easy to push the rates issue to the bottom of the in-tray. Although the exact percentage is yet to be set, rates are likely to equate to something in the region of 40 per cent of rental values this time around.
That is a substantial hit for any business, and across a portfolio of shops it can run to many millions of pounds. So select your adviser with care, and get that appeal in sharpish.
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