Percentage rate of calculating DBKL assessment tax reduced

Effective Jan 1, City Hall's (DBKL) assessment taxes will be reduced by between one and four per cent, depending on the premises, says Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor.

He said the tax percentage rate of commercial property would be reduced to 10 per cent from 12 per cent, serviced apartments (seven per cent from 10 per cent), residential units (four per cent from six per cent) and low-cost flats (two per cent from six per cent).

"The assessment tax for empty commercial land is reduced to seven per cent from 10 per cent, and empty residential land to five per cent from seven per cent.

"The tax assessment rate for Kampung Baru, Kampung Sungai Pencala and Kampung Melayu Segambut Dalam is reduced to one per cent from two per cent, while for other villages, buildings and empty land is between one and two per cent," he told a media conference at the DBKL headquarters here today.

As such, Tengku Adnan said the amount of assessment rates which had to be paid by owners of low and medium-cost was minimal.

"For high cost homes, the rates do not exceed 10 per cent while for commercial buildings, it does not exceed 35 per cent of the assessment taxes currently being paid," he said.

Tengku Adnan said property owners who had submitted written objections to DBKL before or on Dec 17, would still be called to a hearing over their objections from Jan 6 to March 31, next year.

"If they can prove the annual value proposed by DBKL on their property is high, the Protest Hearing Committee will consider lowering it, further reducing the assessment rates," he said, explaining that the assessment rates were based on the annual value of a property.

Annual value means the rough rental estimated in a year that a building can obtain. For example, if the building being assessed can get a rental of RM1,000 a month, its annual value is RM12,000.

Until the last day of objection on Dec 17, DBKL received protests from 80,000 property owners from the overall 507,000 in DBKL over the new assessment rates.