Delinquent Property Tax Payers to face fire

The Inland Revenue Department (IRD) has never used the enforcement instruments on hand to gather unpaid property taxes from evaders, but the time may be approaching when this will change.

Comptroller of the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) Kelvin Pompey said that as the September 30, 2025 deadline approaches for the payment of the many different types of taxes, their records are showing that property tax non-compliance is at an all time high.

“This year, we are particularly concerned about the low level of compliance…low and decreasing levels of compliance with regard to property taxes,” Pompey told SEARCHLIGHT on Thursday, September, 18, 2025.

“In the past, we were up in the 60s, mid- 60s…with compliance percentage. At the end of our last year, we identified that our compliance level is down about 54/ 56 per cent, which means we are heading close towards the half way mark, and we have looked and assessed and analysed the situation, and I… concluded that because of the absence of consequences or enforcement measures by the department, persons are thinking that they do not have to pay their property taxes,” Pompey said.

He stated that as a result, the IRD is going to apply the necessary systems and measures to enforce property tax payments, while they continue to work with persons who may have outstanding amounts.

“I think we have also identified that there are persons who, since 2013 when we put our new property tax system in place, have not paid any property taxes, and so we are now identifying and looking at different ways and means in which we can get persons to comply, whether voluntarily or through enforcement measures,” the comptroller explained.

He noted the possible application of liens on properties this year.

“Now a lien is essentially a legal charge that is placed on the property by the department, and once that is done, it means that the property…you will not be able to sell it or use it as a source of finance or collateral or in any way use the property legally…if you try to do anything with it at the registry, you’re going to come up against a lien,” Pompey explained.

“And, so we want to encourage persons to take the opportunity to assess whether or not they’ve been paying their property taxes, and to do so today.”

Pompey said also that another method the IRD will be using is going to employers of property tax evaders to get amounts deduced from their pay packets.

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