In Kenya, county governments have legislative
authority to levy property taxes to finance some of the costs of the services they
provide. Land
tax is one of the land
taxes imposed and varies depending on the
location and size of the land e.g. Kshs 1,000
per hectare per annum. Land tax is levied only in designated urban areas
while most agricultural land is not taxed. This tax applies equally to land whose title is
on freehold and on leasehold basis. Land rates are charged on each
parcel of land and payable to
the county government. land rent is imposed on leasehold parcels and is
paid to the ministry of land and physical planning through itax.
Land tax varies by county
with Nairobi having the highest rate of 8% of the value of land. Governments make
decisions on the commercial value of the land. This amount is payable in most
county cash offices. Upon full payment of
all rates, one is issued with the rates clearance certificate which is
conclusive evidence that all rates due and interest accrued have been fully
paid.
How to pay your land
rates online in Nairobi
To pay your land rates online in Nairobi, you
will first need to register on NCCG epayments Portal or using the USSD *217# on your phone.
After registering on the online payment
platform:
Log into your account
Find the land search option by clicking on the
ministry of land and urban housing
III. You
will be prompted to enter your title number. Complete the form submit it
Confirm your details and make the payment for the
required amount
If the payment is successful, you will have the
option of printing the payment slip.
To search registered
owners, pay for land rates in Kiambu, please visit the Kiambu County Portal.
Land rent on
the other hand is a levy imposed on leasehold parcels of land where the annual
rent has been reserved at the time the grant is being issued and its payable to
the Ministry of Lands and Physical Planning under Sect 28 of the Lands
Act. Land rent clearance certificate is a document that serves as evidence of
payment of land rent. It is issued upon application and payment of all the
outstanding land rent levies. The Land rent clearance certificate is valid for
one year.
How
to pay land rent.
The process is quite simple
because it is done using any type of mobile phone. Here are the steps that you
should follow;
I. Register
by sending an sms with the word ‘lands’ to the number 21504. An sms confirming
your subscription to the land service will be sent to you.
II. Dial
*512# so as to access the service.
III. You
will receive a prompt asking you if you want to continue registering. Note that
you will be charged Kshs 5 per sms for this service.
IV. If
you choose to proceed, you will receive another prompt with the options such as
registering your land, land tracking and land rate payment.
V. For
the case of the land rate, you will be required to enter your land reference
number, I.D number and to confirm your details.
VI. You
will then receive an sms with your payment options.
To pay land rates online:
I. Open
the browser and visit ecitizen then
sign in or sign up to your registered account.
II. Click
on the ministry of Land and Urban housing development to click on the land
search.
III. Then
just enter your land title number, fill the online form and then submit it.
Confirm the details that have been entered and then proceed for making the
payment.
IV. Once
the payment has been confirmed then you will have the option of printing the
results.
An advantage this tax holds
over other taxes is that its assessment is
simple to understand and to execute. It does not require complicated
methods of calculations and assessments. Further, the collection and
assessment costs are usually low.
The tax rates are varied across regions to
take account of the property location. This way,
properties in developed counties can be charged more while developing counties
charge less which promotes equity.
A disadvantage is that the
value of property is subjective leading to the tax amount not being reflective
of the value of the land or its actual productive capacity and may punish the
registered. Due to at times the low nature of the tax, it does not encourage
optimal utilization of land.
In summary:
The case for taxing land in both urban and rural
areas in Kenya is strong and compelling. In Kenya, while most people already
understand the need to pay land rates, most land owners only pay land rent on
transfer or charge of their property. Any owner could lose their property for default
of payment of Property
tax and
accumulation of penalties levied. In case you are a landowner and your schedule
doesn’t leave time to visit county governments
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