Local taxation: The car tax sticker model sets an example

Preparations are well underway for the transfer of full management of the Housing Tax (Taxe d’habitation) and the Communal Services Tax (Taxe de services communaux – TSC) from the General Treasury of the Kingdom (TGR) to the General Directorate of Taxes (DGI).).

This transfer is provided for in draft law n°14-25 amending law number 47.06 on local authority taxation, and is only a matter of days away from publication in the Official Gazette (Bulletin Officiel). For the DGI, this is not a new mission, since it was already used to managing these two taxes until July 2024. This is the date on which the entire relative value chain will be transferred to the TGR.

The IT teams are already up to speed and eagerly awaiting the transition. Other DGI teams, who will be in direct contact with users, have studied the taxpayer’s itinerary so as to be in a position to meet their needs.

The reallocation of local taxes to the tax administration will be facilitated by digitalization and data, which have already proved their worth in national and local taxation (business tax managed on behalf of local authorities). These are not the two main assets behind the Government’s political decision to award it the management of these two local taxes rather than the General Treasury of the Kingdom (TGR).

Indeed, the primary motivation behind this role reversal is based on the fact that the General Directorate of Taxes (DGI) is the only administration that centralizes the most information on real estate transactions. Indeed, any sale of real estate or land must inevitably go through the DGI’s services, as registration formalities are compulsory. This gives it access to more data on real estate than any other administration, including the Land Registry Agency (Agence de la conservation foncière), which is only informed about land titles. However, land titles are not always available at the time of sale.

Synergy with the Ministry of the Interior

Many homeowners often find it difficult to register for the two local taxes. As a result, they give up until the day they want to sell their property. At that point, they settle the outstanding balance for the last four years. On this point, the General Directorate of Taxes (DGI) will push simplification to the maximum, so as to make it easier for homeowners to register automatically as soon as they buy their property. As far as this point is concerned, the DGI will simplify matters as much as possible, so as to make it easier for owners to register automatically as soon as they buy their home, without having to go through any formalities. What’s more, the synergy with the Ministry of the Interior will enable it to be informed as soon as a building permit is issued by its services. The most effective way of tracking real estate transactions.

Hassan EL ARIF