Tax collection

Tax collection is important to make the urban local bodies and municipalities functional for the public good and all such money is utilized to create assets for the public.

Recently the J & K government gave a detailed response to allay the fears of common people about the imposition of property tax. It said that the Tax is proposed to be levied at just 5% of Taxable Annual Value (TAV) of the property in case of a residential property and at 6% of TAV in case of Non-Residential property. It was also apprised that the tax rates, even in the Corporations are one of the lowest in the country, almost half that of Himachal, and one fourth to one sixth, overall, of other progressive States like Gujarat Maharashtra, Karnataka and Delhi. Tax to be paid in Municipal Committees shall be much lower than that of Municipal Corporations.  There is no property tax in rural areas. Besides the property tax is to be assessed and paid on an annual basis.

Elucidating further the Commissioner, Jammu Municipal Corporation, informed that the tax is progressive in nature with low tax on smaller assets and is linked to circle rates – lower the circle rate, lower is the tax liability of the owner. The tax also takes into account factors like age of the property, usage type and construction type etc to arrive on TAV for realistic capturing of  value  of property.

Cases illustrating such as property tax to be levied on a 35 year old residential house with built up area of 4500 Sft in Gandhi Nagar is assessed to be Rs.5758 for one year.   Similarly, a 25 year old residential house in Sarwal with built up area of 2000 Sft will have to pay only Rs1063 as property tax.