CABINET has approved a bill to extend the deadline for paying Immovable Property Tax until November 30, 2015.
The bill also provides for a 15% discount for those who pay by the end of October – plus a further discount of 2.2% is available if payment is made online via JCC Smart or through a bank..
The proposals were tabled by the Cyprus Finance Minister Harris Georgiades.
Immovable Property Tax rates and bands remain the same at last year:
|
Assessed 1980 Property Value
|
Tax Rate
|
Tax
|
Cumulative Tax
|
|---|---|---|---|
| €1 to €12,500 | nil | €0 | €0 |
| €12,501 to ?€40,000 | 0.6% | €240† | €240† |
| €40,001 to €?120,000 | 0.8% | €640 | €880 |
| €?120,001 to €?170,000 | 0.9% | €450 | €1,330 |
| €170,001 to €?300,000 | 1.1% | €1,430 | €2,760 |
| €?300,001 to €?500,000 | 1.3% | €2,600 | €5,360 |
| €500,001 to €?800,000 | 1.5% | €4,500 | €9,860 |
| €800,001 to €?3,000,000 | 1.7% | €37,400 | €47,260 |
| More than ?€3,000,000 | 1.9% |
†Those owning property(ies) whose total 1980 value exceeds €12,500 will pay tax on their total 1980 value.
I don’t know anybody who has actually received the IPT bill yet.
(Editor’s comment: The Tax Office started sending IPT notices on 11 September. I haven’t received mine either, but there are hundreds of thousands for posties to deliver.)
@Nigel, thanks for clarifying…i was under the impression from calls i made to the ipt tax office in pafos about 4months ago, sorry if you or developer didn’t register what portion of the complex your purchase took up you would be taxed in the high band rate as the whole value of the complex was used for the calculation rather than your ‘bit’ (for which no separate deeds exist) then you claim it back on deeds completion! Looks like they have seen the light, paying tax on what you actually purchased is a good thing…..
(Editor’s comment: You should have visited the Tax Office last year and supplied them with details of the property you purchased, rather than phoning them 4 months ago. See Paying Immovable Property Tax 2014. Had you done so, the Tax Office would have calculated your tax on the information you supplied.)
Thanks editor and embapaphos. I’ll register and pay then.
(Editor’s comment: I suggest you wait to pay until any IPT discounts have been agreed and passed into law.)
@gary , yup tax office confirmed this to me also, and i called office in nicosia and another in pafos to make sure they were singing from the same songsheet…also a change is that for last year if your property was built on a complex that was made up of a number of properties hence whole plot falling into higher tax band…YOU the buyer would have to pay the rate at this high rate and when and if you got deeds you would be refunded for the extra you paid…
No longer the case now, you simply show the tax office what % of a complex your property is, and this value i.e for your portion is rightly taxed….
(Editor’s comment: Last year the Tax Office assessed IPT based on it’s size an estimated value – even if it was part of a complex. And you should have paid tax at the appropriate rate. If you had more than one property, the Tax Office would have assessed your IPT based on the combined value of both properties, which may have pushed you into a higher tax band.)
What is the position regarding IPT if you don’t yet have Final Certificate for your house/development and the developer has disappeared? If you have the keys to the house should you register to pay IPT?
(Editor’s comment: The law changed last year and requires all those who have purchased and taken delivery property to pay Immovable Property Tax directly to the Tax Office regardless of the situation regarding Final Completion Certificate and Title Deeds. See Paying Immovable Property Tax 2014. I suggest you sort this out asap at your Tax Office.)
I have logged into JCC but I cannot see where the IPT payment link is. In the past it has been in the Tax section. Can anyone help.
(Editor’s comment: Be patient – parliament has to agree the reductions announced by the Government – and JCC has to program the payment system to accordingly. The Tax Office started sending out IPT notices last Friday.)
Can someone please explain how the table above works?
I don’t understand the differential between the property values 0.8% & 0.9%
Will I be paying (eg) 0.8% of the 1980 value as stated on my TD ?
Thanks
(Editor’s comment: Let’s say your property has a 1980 value of €130,000.
On the first €40,000 you pay at the rate of 0.6% – €240
On the next €80,000 you pay at the rate of 0.8% – €640 (cumulative total €880)
On the remaining €10,000 you pay at the rate of 0.9% – €90.
Total IPT payable €970 – before applying any discount)
Neither or anybody I know have yet receive the 2015 IPT bill from the tax office. When are they sending them out?
(Editor’s comment: The Tax Office started sending out IPT notices last Friday.)
Hi Nigel,
I have to leave the country in a week and would like to pay my IPT before leaving.
When will people be able to pay the 2015 IPT either via JCC or a bank?
I tried the JCC website and I cannot find the page where one can pay the IPT. Can you please provide details if you know?
Thanks!
(Editor’s comment: Julie (below) paid at the Tax Office. The JCC site doesn’t have a link yet, but it will be in the ‘Tax Department’ section. You can also pay at a bank.)
I was in Cyprus for a holiday break, so I wanted to pay my IPT before coming back home so I took my tax number want down to the government offices, I gave them my number they printed out my IPT tax for 2015, I paid my money plus I got my discount, it’s very easy to do ,,,,,, took me 10 mins, and done for the year, so if you have your number go down to the big orange building in Paphos.
I have recently got my title deeds and now my IPT Bill, then a couple of days ago another Property Tax bill from the municipality plus community tax?? What is the local Tax bill for?
(Editor’s comment: You can think of municipality & community taxes as being the same as the Council Tax that you pay in the UK. There is no UK equivalent of Immovable Property Tax in the UK – it’s paid to central government and is similar to the ‘mansion tax’ that was being discussed.)
I don’t understand why this is a property tax and yet it is then based on the number of people on the title deeds. If there are two people the tax is split and many then don’t have to pay because they are below the threshold. My husband died which left me as the sole owner. I feel it is unfair that I am penalised for this and have to pay the IPT.
Surely the tax payable should be based on the property valuation and that alone. In the UK council tax is calculated this way.
(Editor’s comment: Immovable Property Tax is a personal tax and is based on the value of property registered in the name of the taxpayer. There is equivalent tax in the UK although there has been some discussion about a ‘Mansion Tax’.)
We paid our IPT in May 2015 and were only given a 10% reduction at that time, so where do we claim the additional 5% back from?
(Editor’s comment: As far as I am aware, you cannot recover the additional 5% – but let’s wait and see what the new law says.)
Hi Nigel,
I have never had a bill yet for IPT, I have had to go to the Tax Office in Paphos to sort it out despite the fact both myself and the property are registered for tax. The laughable thing is my assessment is just literally a few Euro over the threshold. If it was €50 less I would have no IPT to pay.
Are they sending bills out this year and if so do you now when ?
It seems an even worse fiasco this year as normally this has been publicised in July and August. No wonder they are extending the deadline as no one seems to know what is happening.
(Editor’s comment: The Tax Department will start sending IPT notices to taxpayers this Friday.)
I am one of the many non-Cyprus residents who are keen to pay my tax. I have visited the website but I am none the wiser. How do I find out how much I need to pay and how do I pay it? The Government can help people pay their tax liability by providing more information. For example I should be given a special reference and be able to find out how I pay the amount due.
(Editor’s comment: You should have registered for Immovable Property Tax with the Tax Office – see Paying Immovable Property Tax 2014.
If you are unable to visit the Tax Office in person you can complete the forms and ask a friend/relative/legal advisor to register on your behalf. I understand that this year the Tax Offices is sending IPT demands to addresses outside Cyprus.)