Residents evading property tax would have a tough time from the next financial year, as the urban development and housing department has issued a notification for local bodies to implement the Bihar Municipal Property Tax (Assessment, Collection and Recovery) Rules, 2013.

The rules require every person liable to pay holding tax to intimate the municipality for assessment of the tax within 30 days of acquiring land or building or both. It further states that every municipality should introduce the holding tax self-assessment system in not more than six months from the date of notification of these rules by the government.

If owners of the holdings suppress information essential for assessment of holding tax, they would be liable for payment of the difference between the amount actually payable and the self-assessed tax and also a penalty of 100 per cent of the differential amount.

The urban local bodies have been asked to get the rules approved and adopted by their respective boards. The bodies have also been asked to provide details of property tax rates being charged by them along with their components — holding tax, water tax, toilet tax, education cess and health cess to the department. The department has also asked the bodies to get Tax and Non-Tax Recovery Regulations, 2012, approved and adopted by their boards at the earliest.

“The details of property tax have been sought to bring uniformity in tax rates of urban local bodies. Khagaul and Phulwarisharif Municipal councils are separated by a road but the property tax rates are different. Details provided by the bodies would be consolidated and a uniform tax structure would be made,” said a senior department official.

Holding, water, toilet, education cess and health cess constitute 2.5, 2, 2, 1.25 and 1.25 per cent respectively of the consolidated property tax rate of 9 per cent. The Tax and Non-Tax Recovery Regulations, 2012, gives powers to the civic bodies to stop providing services, issue attachment of property and realise tax dues by selling the immovable assets of defaulters