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How to work out Small Producer Relief (SPR)

Checked against GOV.UK on 1 October 2026. Written by Bradley Cadd, who runs Duty Sorted, an independent business that isn't part of HMRC. About Duty Sorted. Not tax advice: see the note at the end.

Do I qualify?

GOV.UK's rules, in plain English:

• The products you made in the previous production year contain 4,500 hectolitres or less of pure alcohol. Your production year runs from 1 February to 31 January.
• The relief applies to products with an ABV of less than 8.5% (see what happens at 8.5%). Stronger products pay the full rate, but their alcohol still counts towards your total.
• You add up all the alcoholic products you make at all your premises, including anything made under licence or under contract. Spoiled or thrown-away product and by-products don't count.
• If you're part of a group or have merged with another business, special rules apply. See connected businesses and Small Producer Relief.

Source: Check if you're eligible for Small Producer Relief.

Step 1: work out your annual production in pure alcohol

For each product, litres × ABV ÷ 100 gives litres of pure alcohol (LPA). Add up every product you made in the year, then divide by 100 to get hectolitres of pure alcohol.

Example: 10,000 litres of 6% cider is 600 LPA, and 2,000 litres of 4.5% cider is 90 LPA. Together that's 690 LPA, or 6.9 hectolitres.

Which year's figure? Use last production year's actual total. If you're a new business, use an estimate for the current year instead. See Small Producer Relief for a new business.

Step 2: find the right table

HMRC publishes a lookup table for each type of product (beer, cider, wine and other fermented drinks, spirits), with separate tables for draught and non-draught. Each table has seven bands of annual production, and each band has two figures: a marginal amount and a cumulative amount.

Step 3: work out your discount

1. Find the band your annual production falls in.
2. Subtract the band's start figure from your production.
3. Multiply the result by the band's marginal amount.
4. Add the band's cumulative amount.
5. Divide by your total annual production.
6. Round up to the nearest penny. That's your discount per litre of pure alcohol.

Step 4: take it off the full rate

Your rate is the full rate for the product, less the discount. Duty for a batch is its litres of pure alcohol × your rate, rounded down to the penny.

One rule to remember: the SPR rate is fixed by when the product was made, not when it leaves your premises. GOV.UK says you apply "the SPR rate from the time the product has been produced, rather than the rate in place at the time the product passes the duty point."

Source: How to work out your Alcohol Duty rates if you're eligible for Small Producer Relief.

A worked example, with today's rates

A cider maker whose annual production figure is 11.2 hectolitres of pure alcohol makes 1000 litres of 6.0% still cider (not draught), using the rates in force from 1 February 2026:

This example is worked out by the same calculation Duty Sorted uses, with the current published tables, so it updates when the rates change each February.

Next: Draught Relief explained (it stacks with SPR), and how to keep batch records for your Alcohol Duty return. Want it per bottle? See duty on a pint, bottle or can of cider. Your rate depends on when you made the cider, but which month's return it goes on depends on when it's released: see when is Alcohol Duty due on cider. Not approved yet? See how to apply for an APPA. Unsure which category your drink is? See fruit cider, mead and other fermented products, or what changed for small cider makers.

This guide is general information, not tax advice, and rules and rates can change. Check the links to GOV.UK and your own records before you submit a return. Duty Sorted is independent and is not made or approved by HMRC.