Property Tax Filing

Property Tax – Tamil Nadu

The tax levied on lands and buildings are referred to as property tax. The VII schedule of the Indian Constitution provides the provisions connected with property tax in the State of Tamil Nadu. Property tax is considered to be a cornerstone income for the state’s municipal funding and hence is considered to be a tax of great necessity. In this article, we look at the property tax regulations in Tamil Nadu in detail.

What is a Property Tax?

The total amount paid by a landlord to the concerned local government or to the municipal corporation of the concerned area is called property tax. An individual is liable to remit property tax for all tangible real estate property, houses, and office buildings and for the properties that he/she has rented to others. Property tax is charged by the municipal corporation annually or semi-annually and the amount is levied based on the area, construction, property size, building, etc. The income from the property tax collection are used by the municipality or government for repairing roads, constructing schools or other buildings and for sanitation purposes. Central government properties and vacant properties are generally exempted from property taxation.

Calculation of Property Tax

Property tax of a building is calculated based on its basement area, the rate prevalent in the street where the property is located, usage of the building (residential or non-residential access), type of occupancy (owner or tenant) and the total span of the building’s existence.

Payment of Property Tax

All landowners should pay property tax twice a year, and the deadlines are stipulated to be March and September. However, landowners can alternatively choose to pay the property tax annually.

There are two methods to pay property tax, which are:

• Making payments to the revenue officer or to the assistant revenue officer of the Zonal offices I to XV.
• Making payments in any of the branches of Axis Bank, Canara Bank, City Union Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, IDBI Bank and Indian Overseas Bank.

Easy Loan Approval

Filing the ITR will help individuals when they have to apply for a vehicle loan (2-wheeler or 4-wheeler), House Loan, etc. All major banks can ask for a copy of tax returns as proof of income statement. This is a mandatory document for loan approval.

Claim Tax Refund

There can be instances when tax has been deducted (TDS) from your income even when your total taxable income is less than the basic exemption limit and you have a nil tax liability for that year. In such a case, you will have to claim a TDS refund for which you will have to file an Income Tax Return mandatorily.

Income & Address Proof

Income Tax Return can be used as proof of your Income and Address.

Quick Visa Processing

Most embassies & consultants require you to furnish copies of your tax returns for the past couple of years at the time of the visa application. These are amongst mandatorily required documents and hence it is always advisable to timely file your ITR.

Carry Forward Your Losses

If you file the return within the original due date, you will be able to carry forward losses to subsequent years, which can be used to set off against the income of subsequent years. This means you can deduct certain losses from the relevant income which will help you reduce your tax liability of the future income. This is not possible without filing of the income tax return.

Avoid Penalty

If you are required to file your tax returns according to the income tax act, but didn’t, then the tax officer deserves the right to impose a penalty of up to Rs.5, 000.

Self-declaration forms can be easily obtained by downloading them from the Corporation Website. In regions where citizens may not be able to access the internet, the applicant can obtain the application form from the concerned zonal office. At the time of registration, the applicant has to register the mobile number with the Corporation to receive notifications from various civic services online. If an applicant has already registered his/her mobile number, then the same can be used for OTP verification of the house owner’s property tax record. If a house owner has not registered his/her mobile number, it can be done prior to the online verification.

While filling out the application form online, the applicant must be ready with basic details like Zone number, Division number and bill number. These details are given on an individual’s Property Tax Card.

Given below are the required details that should be entered in the form:

• The land area of individual plots.
• Floor area (if it is a residential or commercial, permanent or semi-permanent).
• Year of construction of the building.