In a move aimed at goading city residents to pay property taxes for the current fiscal, the municipal corporation has decided to offer a 10 percent rebate to those who pay up by February 28, a month before the March 31 deadline to pay the tax.
However, there will be no rebate on payment during the last month, after which the penalty applicable will be charged.
The civic body has yet to collect about Rs 10 crore in unpaid property taxes for the previous year, with at least one-half of assessees having defaulted on payment.
Meanwhile, it appears to be a win-win situation for city residents as last year the Punjab government not only slashed property taxes but also the penalty on delayed payments. While earlier the penalty was 100 percent of the tax amount it was reduced to 20 per cent along with 18 percent interest from April 1, 2014 following the government’s intervention.
Giving details, MC commissioner Uma Shankar Gupta said: “The decision (on the rebate) has been taken in accordance with the Punjab government’s instructions.” Those from within the MC office say that the move has been made to persuade residents to pay up, as hardly 50 percent had come forward last year to pay up the same.
Property tax regulations were implemented by the state government in 2013 and though the last date to pay taxes was September 30, 2014 at least 50 percent of residents failed to pay up. Though MC officials claimed to have drawn up a list of defaulters and said notices had already been dispatched to over 500 residents, this did not appear to have the desired effect. “The rebate is being offered to encourage residents to pay property taxes before the March 31 deadline and avoid penalties,” Gupta said.
{{/usCountry}}Property tax regulations were implemented by the state government in 2013 and though the last date to pay taxes was September 30, 2014 at least 50 percent of residents failed to pay up. Though MC officials claimed to have drawn up a list of defaulters and said notices had already been dispatched to over 500 residents, this did not appear to have the desired effect. “The rebate is being offered to encourage residents to pay property taxes before the March 31 deadline and avoid penalties,” Gupta said.
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A separate counter has been set up at the municipal corporation office in Sector 68 where city residents can pay property tax. Besides, they can also make the payment online on the MC’s official website — www.mcmohali.org.