The civic body has begun collecting property tax from private education institutions, following a Government order that withdrew the exemption to those institutions.
The State Government in January this year had while all education institutions except those it ran, including libraries and hostel, were taxed under the Tamil Nadu Village Panchayats (Assessment and Collection of Taxes) Rules, 1999, under municipal laws all buildings used for education were exempted.
It was removing the distinction and paving way for levy of property tax on education institutions in urban local bodies, as had been recommended by the Third State Finance Commission.
Following the Government order, the Corporation began the exercise of identifying and assessing education institutions within its limits. The civic body has identified 348 private education institutions and raised demand for nearly ₹ 7.50 crore, says a senior officer.
The demand is for an entire financial year. For the first half-year, the demand works out to about ₹ 3.60 crore and of it, the Corporation has thus far collected nearly ₹ 35 lakh.
As per the Government order, the Corporation has assessed the institutions at a rate that is one-and-half times the residential property tax. Since 2018-19 is the first first financial year after the removal of exemption from the property tax net, the Collection is slow.
The Corporation, however, is on the job of asking the institutions to pay the tax, the officer further says.
Meanwhile, the Corporation is also engaged in arriving at the revised property tax rates based on the State Government’s decision to revise upwards by 100 % the property tax rates. The Corporation has classified buildings as ‘A’ or ‘B’ or ‘C’ depending on where the building was – ‘A’ category buildings fall on arterial roads, ‘B’ on streets and lanes and ‘C’ in slums.
Along with the location, the Corporation will also classify buildings on the type of roof and structure to arrive at the property tax. This exercise is under way and the Corporation will release the revised rates, with Government approval, in a couple of weeks from now, the officer adds.
