Property Tax (Amendment) Bill

Bill No. 13/2013

Read the first time on 16th September 2013.

An Act to amend the Property Tax Act (Chapter 254 of the 2005 Revised Edition).

Be it enacted by the President with the advice and consent of the Parliament of Singapore, as follows:

Short title and commencement

1. This Act may be cited as the Property Tax (Amendment) Act 2013 and shall come into operation on such date as the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, appoint.

Amendment of section 2

2. Section 2(1) of the Property Tax Act (referred to in this Act as the principal Act) is amended —

(a)	by deleting the definition of “industrial premises”;
(b)	by deleting “8(2),” in paragraph (a) of the definition of “Minister”; and
(c)	by inserting, immediately after the words “9(2) and (3),” in paragraph (a) of the definition of “Minister”, “19(12),”.

Amendment of section 8

3. Section 8 of the principal Act is amended —

(a)

by deleting subsection (2) and substituting the following subsections:

“(1A) Notwithstanding subsection (1), no refund of tax shall be made with respect to —

(a)	any unbroken period of 30 days or a calendar month or longer that starts on or after 1st January 2014; or
(b)	such portion of any unbroken period of 30 days or a calendar month or longer that falls after 31st December 2013.

(2) An owner of a building claiming under this section a refund of the tax for any period or part thereof falling between 1st November 2012 and 31st December 2013 (both dates inclusive) shall submit his claim in writing to the Comptroller not later than 31st March 2014.”; and

(b)

by deleting paragraph (b) of subsection (3).

Amendment of section 9

4. Section 9 of the principal Act is amended by deleting subsections (2) and (3) and substituting the following subsections:

“(2) The Minister may, by order published in the Gazette, direct that the tax payable in respect of any property prescribed, or falling within a class of property prescribed, or any part of such property, shall be at a rate or rates less than 36%; and different rates may be specified for different properties or classes of properties prescribed.

(3) For the purposes of this Act, a reference to a change in the prescribed class of any property is a reference to the property or part thereof —

(a)	being prescribed or falling within a class prescribed by the Minister under subsection (2), where it was previously not so prescribed or it previously did not fall within any prescribed class, as the case may be; or
(b)	ceasing to be prescribed or to fall within a prescribed class, whether or not it also falls within any other prescribed class,

because of a change in circumstances relating to the property (including a change in the use of the property or part thereof).”.

Amendment of section 19

5. Section 19 of the principal Act is amended —

(a)

by inserting, immediately after subsection (11), the following subsections:

“(12) Without prejudice to subsection (11), where there has been a change in the prescribed class of any property referred to in section 9(3), the owner of the property shall, within 15 days after the date of the change, give notice thereof in writing to the Chief Assessor, unless the Minister, in an order referred to in section 9(2) —

(a)	prescribes a period longer than 15 days; or
(b)	provides that no notice need be given.

(12A) Where there has been a change in the prescribed class of any property referred to in section 9(3), the owner of the property shall, notwithstanding the change, continue to be liable to pay the tax in respect of the property he had been paying immediately prior to the change as if no change had occurred until his liability is adjusted under subsection (12B), or subsections (12B) and (12C).

(12B) Where the Comptroller becomes aware of the change in the prescribed class of any property, the owner of the property shall be liable, as from the date of the change, to pay the tax on the basis of the rate or rates applicable to the property following the change.

(12C) Without prejudice to subsection (12B), where there is a revised annual value ascribed to the property in a subsequent amended Valuation List pursuant to the change in the prescribed class of the property, the owner of the property shall be liable, as from the date of the change and at the option of the Comptroller, to pay the tax on the revised annual value.

(12D) For the purposes of subsections (12) to (12C), where planning permission (other than provisional permission) for the making of any material change in the use of the property or part thereof (as the case may be) is given by the competent authority under the Planning Act (Cap. 232) and the circumstances for which such permission is sought correspond to any circumstances resulting in the change in the prescribed class of the property, then the date of the planning permission shall be prima facie evidence of the date of the change in the prescribed class of the property.

(12E) No tax shall be payable or refundable, as the case may be —

(a)	under subsection (12B) or (12C) in respect of any period which is more than 5 years prior to the 1st of January of the year in which a notice of amendment to the Valuation List under section 20 is issued pursuant to the change in the prescribed class of the property; or
(b)	under subsection (12B) in respect of any period which is more than 5 years prior to the 1st of January of the year in which the Chief Assessor considers it is not desirable that an amendment be made to the Valuation List in respect of the property notwithstanding the change in the prescribed class thereof.”; and

(b)

by deleting the section heading and substituting the following section heading:

“Notice to be given by owners of property, etc.”.

Amendment of section 20

6. Section 20(2) of the principal Act is amended by inserting, immediately after paragraph (c), the following paragraph:

“(ca)

there is any change in the prescribed class of any property referred to in section 9(3);”.

Amendment of section 20A

7. Section 20A of the principal Act is amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “21 days” in subsection (2) and substituting the words “30 days”; and
(b)	by deleting the words “21 days” in subsection (7) and substituting the words “30 days”.

Amendment of section 22

8. Section 22 of the principal Act is amended —

(a)

by deleting subsection (1) and substituting the following subsection:

“(1) Where it appears to the Comptroller that any tax is payable or is to be refunded in respect of any property under section 19(8), (12B) or (12C) or 21, as the case may be, the Comptroller shall give notice thereof to the owner of the property concerned stating the amount of the tax due or tax to be refunded and the period for which the tax is payable or to be refunded, as the case may be.”;

(b)

by deleting the words “21 days” in subsection (2) and substituting the words “30 days”;

(c)

by deleting the words “21 days” in subsection (5) and substituting the words “30 days”; and

(d)

by deleting the section heading and substituting the following section heading:

“Collection and refund of taxes”.

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