To address the persistent property tax shortfall over the past three years and increase revenue, the Excise, Taxation, and Narcotics Control Department has brought all private housing societies under the jurisdiction of the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) and the District Council directly into the property tax system.
The department announced that starting September, both domestic and commercial property tax, along with luxury tax bills, will be issued to these societies. Property tax will also now apply to houses under construction within private housing schemes.
For the 2025–26 fiscal year, the department will collect commercial and residential property taxes in a single annual payment rather than in quarterly or half-yearly instalments. Consequently, all taxpayers, whether new or existing, will receive bills covering the entire year at once.
This year, the bills are being calculated based on the Deputy Commissioner’s assessed property rates rather than the department’s previous rates, resulting in an increase of up to 50% for every taxpayer. The Excise and Taxation Officer (ETO) Rawalpindi has announced a 5% rebate for those who pay by September 30. From October 1, however, defaulters will face strict action, including property unit seals and arrests.
The department is facing additional challenges in preparing tax bills due to persistent technical glitches in its IT system. With a daily target of 500 bills, only around 100 are being generated. The issue has persisted for the past 10 days, causing further delays in the billing process.
The shift to DC-assessed rates has sparked strong protests from citizens, who say the steep increases have made the new property tax regime increasingly burdensome.
RDA supposed to provide civic facilities like water supply to resident, street garbage and rubbish collection, Street lights, security guards, etc then they are justified to collect taxes on annual basis. The societies residents are already paying monthly service charges & annually maintenance charges to societies management and administrative offices.