Finance Minister inaugurates real estate tax building in Sinai
Minister of Finance Mohamed Ma’it will inaugurate Sunday a new real estate tax building in Al-Tur City, South Sinai Governorate. The inauguration will take place in the presence of Head of the Real Estate Tax Authority Samia Hussein, and Governor of South Sinai Khaled Fouda. Ma’it affirmed that this step comes within the framework of his ministry’s keenness to upgrade the Real Estate Tax Authority, improve its performance, complete the automation of the tax administration's work cycle, develop and train the employees and know the requirements, tools and mechanisms necessary for them to efficiently do their jobs. He clarified that developing the Real Estate Tax Authority is one of the main tasks of the ministry in the upcoming period, besides considering the laws and regulations of the authority in order to streamline the procedures and facilitate them to the financiers. For her part, Hussein referred to extending the deadline for Egyptian property owners to pay their property tax without a delay fine until October 15 to avoid overcrowding. In addition, the Ministry of Finance launched a website, http://enquiry.rta.gov.eg, to fill out a data form for the unit to be inquired; also, the ministry allocated a main call center with the number (0235317323) attached to 10 sub lines to answer the questions of financiers. In July, the Parliament approved a bill on real estate taxes as a mean to counter tax evasion. Adviser to the Finance Minister Fat'hi Shaaban said that under the bill, both the seller and buyer will be obliged to pay 2.5 percent of the value of the property in taxes to the state. Both should pay the tax within 30 days from the selling date, Shaaban noted. He assured that the bill has nothing to do with an inheritance tax that had already been cancelled by law.