NEW DELHI: Residents within the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) area will soon be subject to a unified property tax system, as the civic body has completed the necessary bye-laws and technical preparations for a new assessment method, officials announced on Thursday.
Officials indicated that the NDMC has modernized its online property tax platform and conducted tests with the National Informatics Centre, setting the stage for the implementation of changes to the outdated rateable value-based assessment approach.
A Municipal Valuation Committee is set to be established shortly, after which it is anticipated that the revised framework will come into effect in the coming weeks.
This update follows amendments to the NDMC Act of 1994, introduced through The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2026. Under the new regulations, property tax assessments within the NDMC will be exclusively based on the Unit Area Method (UAM), consolidating all properties under a singular taxation system.
The Jan Vishwas Bill, 2026 mandates the formation of a Municipal Valuation Committee responsible for recommending the base values for vacant land and buildings, along with the method for determining and adjusting property taxes.
The committee will consist of two to six members, including the NDMC chairperson.
According to officials, previously, some properties in the NDMC area were still assessed using the old rateable value method, while most had already transitioned to UAM, leading to two conflicting assessment frameworks.
“Five percent of the properties were still taxed based on the rateable value method, while the remainder was assessed under UAM. This discrepancy led to considerable litigation. The new system aims to resolve this issue,” an official stated.
Under the new framework, tax liabilities will no longer rely on estimated rental values. Instead, they will be determined using five objective criteria: built-up area, property location, colony category, usage, and whether the property is residential or commercial.
Officials emphasized that this change is designed to enhance transparency and predictability in property tax assessments, allowing residents to rely on fixed parameters instead of individual valuations.
The municipal authority will announce the applicable rates and categories, which will be incorporated into the property tax systems, enabling taxpayers to calculate their liabilities through a standardized process.
Officials expect that this transition will minimize disputes related to assessments and provide greater clarity for property owners in the NDMC area.
