Paying tax to the government is a fundamental duty of every Indian citizen. Taxes are the biggest income source for the government. The property taxes collected by the local municipal bodies can be used to develop the local services. Every person who owns a tangible asset like a house, piece of land, commercial building or third-party rented place is legally eligible to pay a property tax.
Property tax is mandatory for every property owner; however, it is up to the owner whether to pay it either annually or twice a year. Now, it is possible for property owners to pay their taxes online in just a few easy steps and totally hassle-free.
With more and more advancements in online techniques, cumbersome processes like paying taxes have also become easy through the local municipal body’s official website. Along with how to pay property tax online, in this article, we will also be telling you how to check property tax online as well as when to pay property tax.
Key Takeaways
- Property tax can be paid online through the local governing body’s official website.
- There are different types of properties that are taxable by the local government.
- There are certain exemptions and concessions to the taxation structure, determined by certain conditions and purposes of the assets.
Learn The Basics: Types of Tangible Properties
According to law, tangible property is anything that can be touched and occupies space. This includes both real property and personal property. Tangible properties can be of the following types:
| Land Property | Piece of Land |
| Constructions | Buildings, statues, etc made on property land |
| Personal Property | House, Car, Factory, etc |
How to Pay Property Tax Online: Step-wise Guide
As the local municipal body is different for different places and states, they have their own websites to help pay taxes online. However, not always would a municipal body allow you to pay online. But don’t worry, in most cases, you surely have the option to pay your property tax online. You will also see how to check property tax online. The following are the steps on how to pay property tax online:
- First, you need to visit the official website of the local municipality body of your area.
- You would need your credentials to log in to that page. If you were registered on that portal before, do register first to log in.
- After successful login, click on the tab, “Property Tax”.
- The page will be redirected to the property tax section, where you have to enter your property type and the year of assessment.
- There would be some additional details that you have to provide such as the owner’s name (your name if you are the owner), property identification number (you will find that on the ownership documents), and other important details.
- In the next step, you would be redirected to a payment page where you have to put your tax amount carefully, after which you need to choose the mode of payment and complete the process till you receive a debit message from your bank.
- As the last step, keep a future reference of the challan by downloading or printing it out as a hard copy.
Note – The steps given above are highly generalized on how to pay property tax online, and it is not compulsory that every website will follow each step the way it has been explained. But, moreover, the steps would be similar so, there’s no need to worry!
Steps to Download Your Challan
Besides knowing how to pay property tax online, you must also remember to keep a download or hard copy of the challan. Following are the steps for the needful:
- First, you have to visit the online portal of the Municipal Corporation, where you just paid the tax.
- Log in, if required, with the help of an OTP which you will receive in the registered mobile number.
- After this, your property tax payment status will appear on the screen.
- Select the option “Actions” from the extreme right-hand side of the row.
- Open the “tax paid details” and scroll down to select “download receipt”.
- The last step would be to click on “Download PDF” and complete the download.
Did You Know?
- Countries like Bahrain, Fiji, Israel, Dominica, and Kenya are tax-free. These countries do not levy property taxes on owners.
- The Cayman Islands do not levy any kind of tax on their residential people.
Who is Liable to Pay Property Tax? When To Pay Property Tax?
There are people who believe that if they rent out a property and do not use it themselves, they would get exempted from the tax payment. The tenants or people who rent something to use are the ones who are directly benefiting from the property and, therefore, they should be liable to pay taxes. However, that’s simply not the case.
As per the Income Tax Act, 1961, only the legal owner of the concerned tangible property is liable to pay a tax in India, annually. People who rent or borrow properties are not eligible to pay taxes. You can only profit from renting your house or other tangible property, not get away from paying the tax.
Property tax is needed to be paid per year on a particular date as per the local municipal body of your area. You should know how to check property tax online. Paying the property tax on time is important to avoid being charged with a penalty, in case you miss the due date to pay the property tax.
Exemptions and Concessions Available with Property Tax
Although everyone is legally entitled to pay property tax and should know how to pay property tax online, there might be a few exemptions and concessions as mentioned below:
- Any plot of land/building kept reserved for special purposes like worship, burial, heritage, etc.
- Area/building used for charity purposes.
- Agricultural land is exempted from taxation. However, the portion of land beside an agricultural ground used for residence by the landowner is taxable.
- When the property is bought through a loan policy and the interest rates have been levied on the principal amount. Here, the primary portion of the tax is to be paid by the loan-providing organization.
- The dwelling house that is owned and occupied by a war widow, a gallantry award winner is not taxable.
Did You Know?
- A concession of 30% is allowed for women, senior citizens, and those who are physically challenged.
Conclusion
It is the duty of every legal owner of tangible assets to pay property taxes at the proper time every year. Unless your property belongs to the exempted conditions, you are liable to pay tax every year. It is important to pay the taxes at the right time before the due dates, otherwise, you would face a penalty charge as a late fee, added to the tax amount. Thus, you must know how to pay property tax online.
FAQs
Government bodies earn a major portion of their revenue through income and property taxes of different legal entities. Property tax is used for the development and maintenance of public properties and amenities in populated areas such as the construction and maintenance of roads, street lamps, parks, sewer systems, water supply systems, etc.
This information can be obtained through the local municipal body’s official website. The percentage of tax would be mentioned on the home page. You can simply multiply your asset’s value with the percentage to see the amount of tax.
If you do not pay tax for your property, the government would put a tax lien on your property, which makes it unavailable to sell. Furthermore, you might lose possession of your property due to a foreclosure, which is the government selling off your property in order to compensate for the unpaid taxes.
The local governing body i.e., the local Municipal Corporation or Municipality is responsible for calculating and levying taxes on the residents’ properties.
Property Taxes generally have a due date every year within which it needs to be paid. If missed, you would be charged a late fine, which is often a percentage of the total amount of the tax payable. This percentage varies from state to state. While some states do not have a late fee structure, some states might charge somewhere between 5-20% of the total tax amount.
Read more about How to Use a Tax Calculator.
