Thiruvananthapuram: The government has issued an order waiving the penal interest on property tax payable to local self-governments for buildings till March 31. With this, owners can save up to 24 per cent in penal interest per year. The previous years' property tax arrears can also be paid without penal interest in addition to this year’s dues.
Property tax is to be paid in two instalments of six months each every year. If Rs 2,000 is fixed as property tax for a building per annum, the owner should pay Rs 1,000 each for a period from April to September and October to March. If the first instalment of property tax is not paid by September 30, penal interest will be calculated at the rate of 2 per cent for every month from October 1.
If the tax is not paid for a whole year, owners must pay a penal interest of Rs 480. The new order is beneficial to those who have not paid for years.
The order also states that for those who have already paid penal interest along with the property tax, the local bodies should take steps to adjust this amount in the next year's property tax.
