The majority of our government’s funding comes from taxes. The same is true of the local municipal body’s collection of property taxes, which is ultimately applied to the construction of neighborhood amenities. All tangible property, including residential residences, office structures, and property rented to third parties, is subject to taxation by any property owner or legal body.

Every property owner must pay property tax, however, it is their choice whether to do so annually or twice a year. Now that property owners may pay their taxes online, here is a tutorial to walk you through the full procedure.

The instructions for making an online property tax payment are in the section after this one.

How does property tax work?

The total sum that a landlord pays to the relevant local authority or municipal body is referred to as property tax. Any physical real estate owned by a person, including but not limited to homes, offices, and other properties that they have rented out to others, is subject to property tax. The construction, area, or size of the property, the building(s) located on it, and any other variables that may be significant in accordance with the state laws that are applicable determine the amount of property tax collected by the municipal corporation and are assessed annually or semi-annually.

The municipality or government primarily uses the money it receives from the collection of property taxes to repair roads, construct schools, colleges, and other buildings, as well as to improve and maintain the hygienic conditions of the state’s residents. Federally held real estate as well as vacant homes are frequently exempt from property taxes.

How can I figure out the property tax?

The size of the basement, the tax rate in the area where the property is located, the use of the building, which may be either residential or non-residential access, the type of occupancy, say, like the owner or tenant, and the length of time the building has stood or been situated in such place are all factors that affect a building’s property tax.

Online property tax payment

Property tax is due twice a year from each landowner, with deadlines in March and September. However, property owners also have the option of paying the tax annually.

There are two ways to pay property taxes:

  • Transferring money between any Axis Bank, Canara Bank, City Union Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, IDBI Bank, or Indian Overseas Bank branch.
  • Pay the revenue officer or assistant revenue officer of the Zonal offices I through XV.

Revising the Property Tax Standards

All urban local bodies must adopt a general property tax adjustment for the current half year 2018–19 in accordance with the provisions defined and provided in the Urban Local Bodies Act, per a Government Order (GO) issued by the Tamil Nadu government on April 1, 2018. Commercial buildings have suffered a 100% increase in the revised property tax, compared to a 50% increase for residential structures.

What should be kept in mind when completing the Self Declaration Forms?

Self-declaration forms are easily available on the Corporation website. If the applicant lives in a place where internet access may not be available, they can obtain the application form from the appropriate zonal office. The applicant must register their cellphone number with the Corporation at the time of registration in order to get online alerts from various civic services. If it has previously been registered, the applicant’s cellphone number may be used for OTP verification of the property owner’s tax history. If they haven’t done, a homeowner may register their mobile number prior to the online verification.

While completing the online application form, the applicant must have access to essential information such as the Zone number, Division number, and bill number. This information can be found on a person’s property tax card.

Information that is necessary or fundamental for paying property taxes

The taxpayer must make sure that this fundamental information is on hand with him or her because the authority will need them for filing and paying the property tax. The following would be some of these specifics:

  • The number of plots and each one’s land area
  • Year of construction of the structure
  • Even if it is a permanent or semi-permanent non-residential building or piece of property, the floor space.

Fundamental Value Determination

The fundamental value for residential properties is the rental yield per square foot per month. This applies to all Municipalities and Township committees of different zones’ taxation on the annual rental value of the buildings and land. To estimate the fundamental value, instructions have been supplied on how to convert recently built residential (RCC) constructions of 1000 square feet into a rental value per square foot.

Decreasing Value of Property

The amount that the property’s annual value is reduced depends on how long the building has been standing, or simply on how old it is. The following depreciation percentages shall be applicable based on the age of the building:

  • Buildings that are less than five years old are exempt from depreciation.
  • Buildings that are 5 to 15 years old must be depreciated at a rate of 15%.
  • Buildings that have been in existence for more than 20 years will be subject to a 20% depreciation.

Construction or Property Use

A 30% discount will be applied to the value of the building or property if the owners themselves occupy it.

Nature of the Building or Property

For taxes purposes, structures are broken down into three groups: thatched, tiled, and RCC. The following discount consequences apply to these categories:

  • There is a 50% discount available for buildings with thatched roofs.
  • Items are judged to be eligible for a 25% discount, including tile, GA, AC sheet, etc.
  • There is no evidence that RCC constructions qualify for any savings.

Ceiling

Usually, tax rises happen once every five years. To prevent putting an undue burden on the taxpayer, these increases must be reasonable. Because of this, the revenue authorities put the following limitations on tax increases:

  • For residential properties that are owner-occupied, the increase shouldn’t be more than 25%.
  • In rented residential buildings, it shouldn’t be more than 50%.
  • For industrial structures, it shouldn’t be higher than 100%.
  • For commercial properties, the assessment shouldn’t be more than 150 percent.

Conclusion

You have two options for paying your property tax online: either through the official municipal organization’s website. Phoenixtax- Tax consultants in Tambaram, Chennai can make the entire process simpler by eliminating a lot of the work involved in paying the property tax.