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Press Release - Property Tax 09.07.2020
Alderney takes control of its own Property Tax
The States of Alderney has approved a new law enabling the island to take control of its own property taxation from next January.
The Projet de Loi 'Alderney Property Tax (Enabling Provisions) Law 2020' was passed by nine votes to one at the States meeting on July 8 and now goes forward for Royal Sanction.
The new single tax combines Taxation on Real Property (TRP), collected by Guernsey with a grant returned to Alderney every year, and the Occupier's Rate which is collected locally.
All property owners are to be informed of the details in the next few weeks through an awareness campaign in the form of a letter from Policy & Finance Chairman James Dent together with an informative Q&A leaflet.
In addition, there will be separate communication with key groups and full information will be published on the States website.
Mr Dent told the States meeting the single property tax will give the island the freedom to set property tax tariffs in a manner that reflects Alderney's needs rather than those of Guernsey, and will make collection of taxes simpler and more efficient.
"In the initial year, we expect many people will see little difference other than receiving one bill instead of two," he said.
He also corrected "myths" that the change would eliminate the possibility of support from the States of Guernsey revenue reserve in future, for example in the event of exceptional events such as the current Covid-19 crisis.
The States of Alderney will also be taking over responsibility from the States of Guernsey for setting rates of fuel duty and document duty and retaining the proceeds from these. Mr Dent also confirmed the new combined local taxation would not leave Alderney out of pocket compared with the current grant system paid by Guernsey.
Money raised by the single property tax goes toward the cost of all local services provided by the States of Alderney such as refuse collection and disposal, road maintenance, the harbour and maintaining green spaces. The States will have the power to raise or lower the levy in future years to meet projected budgets.
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