NASHIK: The Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) has seen a notable rise in digital property tax collections since the Covid-19 pandemic, with online payments accounting for 50% (Rs 118 crore) of the total Rs 235 crore property tax revenue as of March 10 in the current fiscal year.
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, NMC’s online property tax payment was only 7%. This shift towards digital payments indicated a growing trend towards online convenience.
The civic body introduced the amnesty scheme for the property tax defaulters between Oct 1, 2024, and Jan 31 this year. Under the scheme, up to 90% of the penalty amount was waived for people clearing all their tax dues in the given period.
“We received a good response to the amnesty scheme and mopped up around Rs 65 crore from the defaulters. But these defaulters had to pay their dues offline. Otherwise, the online property tax payment could have surpassed 60% of the total revenue so far,” an NMC official said.
In the last financial year (2023-24), NMC had collected property tax of Rs 206 crore, which included Rs 100 crore (50%) in online payment.
Property holders paying their property tax online get a 1% rebate in the property tax bill. Besides, NMC introduced tax rebates this financial year to incentivise prompt property taxpayers. Taxpayers, who paid the annual property tax in April, were given an 8% rebate, while those who paid in May received a 6% discount. Those who paid the complete property tax in June were given a 3% rebate.
NMC has set the property tax collection target of Rs 250 crore for the current financial year.
