Northern Ireland Valuation Tribunal

Topics:

The Northern Ireland Valuation Tribunal (NIVT) was established on 1st April 2007 primarily to hear and determine appeals against new capital values for property in Northern Ireland in respect of domestic rates. It also falls within the NIVT’s remit to hear and determine appeals against decisions relating to a number of rating rebates.

The Tribunal is an independent one set up to consider appeals by home owners (or interested parties) who have first applied to the District Valuer at the Land and Property Service (LPS) – formerly known as the Valuation and Lands Agency (VLA) – and, subsequently, also the Commissioner of Valuation for NI. Those appealing against rebate decisions will have firstly applied to the LPS department dealing with the relevant rebate.

Further information on NICT Covid 19 Remote Hearing protocol is available at our publication section.

PLEASE NOTE: NIVT Decisions are a matter of public record and are published on the website of the Judiciary of Northern Ireland.

The Northern Ireland Valuation Tribunal: Privacy Notice explains how the NIVT's judiciary process your data when exercising judicial functions in tribunal proceedings.

What does the NIVT do?

The NIVT can hear appeals brought under 3 different articles of the Rates (NI) Order 1977 (NI28), as amended by the Rates (Amendment) (NI) Order 2006 (NI18). These are set out in full here, but put simply are:

Where the valuation of a property is altered and it is disputed by the owner
Where a review of a property with disabled facilities is disputed by the owner
Where a relevant party disputes a decision made by the Commissioner

The NIVT can also hear appeals under the Rate Relief (Education, Training and Leaving Care) Regulations (NI) 2007:

Where a review of entitlement to exemption is disputed by the relevant party

And the Rate Relief (Lone Pensioner Allowance) Regulations (NI) 2008:

Where a review of entitlement to a rebate is disputed by the relevant party

The Rate Relief (Low Carbon Homes Scheme) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2010:

Where a review of entitlement to relief is disputed by the relevant party.

And the Rate Relief (Energy Efficiency Homes Scheme) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2010:

Where a review of entitlement to a reduction is disputed by the relevant party.

How do I appeal?

At this stage you will have applied to the District Valuer and subsequently the Commissioner of Valuations for NI or, in some cases, you may have applied to the Rates Collection Agency, and now wish to move to the next stage. You now have 28 days from the date of the relevant determination / review / decision to appeal to the NIVT.

Each ground of appeal has a specific form to help you issue your Notice of Appeal, which should be completed as fully as possible and returned to the Secretary of the NIVT.

Each form has a section where you can indicate if you wish to appeal by written representation (ie. no attendance required). There is also the opportunity to put the NIVT on notice of any 'interested parties' who may be directly affected by your appeal.

For futher information and forms are available at our publication section of this website

What happens if my appeal is late?

If you wish to appeal, but are outside the 28 day lodgement period, you can still submit your appeal. You should complete the appropriate portion of the Appeal Form, stating the reason/s why the appeal is late.

The tribunal panel will first consider whether to allow an extension of time to accept the lodgement of the appeal. If successful, your appeal will then be listed for hearing at the next tribunal sitting; if refused, you will be notified accordingly.

What happens at my appeal hearing?

You will receive at least 28 days notice of a date of hearing. The appropriate time and venue will also be stated. You should endeavour to be 15 minutes early to allow staff to note your appearance.

At any hearing, the tribunal panel will normally be composed of three members, one from each of the three categories. The legal member will always preside over the hearing (the chairperson).

At the hearing, apart from the tribunal panel there will also be representatives from the LPS (usually two - the valuer and the senior valuer involved with your case). The panel will already be familiar with the documentation and will ask for clarification as required from both parties. You will be given the opportunity to state your case.

Although those attending will not normally be asked to take an oath, and whilst the tribunal endeavours to remain informal, all parties are reminded of their duty to tell the truth at all times.

The tribunal panel will usually break for a short time to consider and discuss the case in private. In the majority of appeals the chairperson will announce the panel’s decision on the day, but occasionally it may be necessary to adjourn the hearing to allow for further consideration.

What happens next?

All appellants will receive a written Notice of Decision even if you attended the Tribunal hearing. If the appeal is upheld, the LPS will be notified.

If the appeal is refused, you have 14 days from the date of receipt of the written decision to apply to the tribunal to review its decision. However, an application for review will only be accepted if the tribunal is satisfied that:

the decision was wrong because of an error
additional interested parties or new evidence have become available
it is required in the interests of justice

In certain circumstances it is possible to appeal the decision of the NIVT to either the Court of Appeal or The Lands Tribunal.

In these cases you also have 14 days from the date of receipt of the written decision to apply to the tribunal.

Please contact the office to obtain more information on these matters.

Related Legislation

Use the links below to access the particular piece of related legislation required. Links provided on this page will navigate you Office of Public Sector Information website where you can view the relevant legislation.

Valuation Tribunal Decisions

All Valuation Tribunal decisions are now housed on our sister website, Judiciary NI and can be found using the following link.

Contact Us

If you have received a Notice and have any queries on the appeal procedure, or have any comments or suggestions about the NIVT process and/or administration, you can contact the NIVT as outlined below: