Property owners to start paying property tax

Property owners in the country have been encouraged to start paying property rate with the birth of the Unified Property Rate Platform.

According to vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, one of the problems Ghana has faced in the area of revenue generation since independence is that only about nine per cent of properties in Ghana pay property taxes.

This, in his view, is because “we have not had a database of properties, the owners and their addresses. As a result, many property owners do not even receive bills for property taxes although they are willing to pay.”

Dr Bawumia, however, says with the implementation of the Digital Property Address System, the Ghanacard, and Mobile Money Interoperability, and after three years of painstaking work, Government has been able to put in place a Unified digital platform for property taxation which the Ghana Revenue Authority is now rolling out together with the Municipal and District Assemblies.

The Unified Digital Platform for Property Taxation includes the list and details of over seven million properties, uniquely identified by their addresses.

On this digital platform, property owners can verify their property rates and pay same and receive receipts online.

Also, Dr Bawumia says the GRA and MMDAs can see, in real-time, which properties have or have not paid their property taxes.

This unified digital platform, he noted, will significantly increase property rate collection and revenues.

Announcing the new Unified Property Rate Platform which can be accessed at www.myassembly.gov.gh, he encouraged all to visit, login and explore the site.