Amended land and buildings tax bill ‘bonus’ for property owners
The revised draft bill for the land and buildings tax approved by Cabinet on Tuesday will give property owners more time to adjust to it, an expert has said.
The change that got the most attention is the tax rate of 2 per cent for unused land, with the rate increasing 0.5 per cent every three years until capped at 5 per cent.
The previous draft had the same ceiling but a quicker increase from the base rate.
"The new rate will take almost 20 years before it reaches 5 per cent, allowing owners to adjust," said Samma Kitasin, a board member of the Secondary Mortgage Corporation.
The planned January 2018 enforcement of the tax is also one year later than the launch date listed in the previous draft, he said.
The maximum tax rate for agricultural use and residential is 0.2 per cent, with the rate applied to land with a value exceeding Bt50 million, while the maximum rate applied to commercial use is 2 per cent.
The government will forward the draft bill to the National Legislative Assembly for debate.
