About Your Rates
Interest Charges
Pensioner Rebates
Address Change (Postal) for Property
Owner
Address Change (Postal) for Managing
Agent
Categorisation of Land: Category
& Sub-Category of Land for Rating
Land Valuations
Postponed Rates
Mixed Development Land
Aggregation of Multiple Lots
Domestic Waste Management Charge
Name Change on the Rate Notice
GST
Section 603 Certificates
Interest Charges
If an instalment is not paid on or before the due date, the instalment will become overdue and will be known as "Rates in Arrears".
Rates in Arrears will be subject to daily interest in accordance with the provisions of The Local Government Act, 1993 at the interest rate approved by the Minister for Local Government.
The interest percentage will be shown on the front of your Rate Notice. For the financial year 2009/10 this percentage is set at 9% per annum.
Rates in Arrears may also be subject to recovery proceedings by Council and may incur recovery costs.
Pensioner Rebates
To become an eligible pensioner you must be liable for the rates and charges on a property. This property will need to be your sole or principal residence, and you must have a current pensioner concession card. This pensioner concession card will need to be issued by Centrelink , or you may hold a current pensioner concession card issued by the Department of Veteran's Affairs because:
- you are a widow or widower of a member of the Australian Defence or Peacekeeping Forces, or
- you are the unmarried mother of a deceased unmarried member of either of those forces, or
- you are a widowed mother of a deceased unmarried member of either of those forces, or
- you are a TPI under the Veterans'' Entitlement Act, 1986, or
- you receive a general rate of pension adjusted for extreme disablement under section 22 (4) of the Veterans' Entitlement Act 1986 of the Commonwealth, or a special rate of pension under section 24 of that Act.
Please click here for more information relating to eligible Pension Concession issued by Centrelink or Department of Veterans Affairs.
Please Note:
- If you start receiving a pension after the commencement of a quarterly billing period and you meet the above conditions, you can claim a rebate from the start of the next quarterly billing period.
- If you cease to qualify as an eligible pensioner, you will not be entitled to receive a rebate after the end of the quarterly billing period in which you ceased to be eligible. Therefore, if you were granted a pensioner rebate in advance that you are no longer entitled to, it will be charged back to your rate account for the period pertaining to your ineligibility.
- Please contact the City on 02 9265 9333 immediately if your eligibility changes.
The “Application for Pensioner Concession” Form can be found on the Ratepayer Forms page.
Address Change (Postal) for Property Owner
If your current postal address is different from the address shown on the front of the Rate Notice, please notify Council’s Rating Department immediately. Notification can be made by fax, post or via email to rates@cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au
The “Change of Address” Form can be found on the Ratepayer Forms page.
Please note : Council will not accept notifications of change of address over the telephone.
Address Change (Postal) for Managing Agent
Council will accept a letter/ fax or email from the Managing Agent, on behalf of the property owner to change the forwarding address. Notification can be made by fax, post or via email to rates@cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au
The “Change of Address” Form can be found on the Ratepayer Forms page.
Please note : Council will not accept notifications of change of address over the telephone.
Categorisation of Land : Category & Sub-Category of Land for Rating
In accordance with the provisions of the Local Government Act, 1993, (sec514 to sec531) Council has declared each parcel of rateable land within the Council area to be within one of the following categories: Residential or Business
Currently council has two residential sub-categories and one business sub-category. The sub-category your property falls into will be identified on the front of your rate notice. Alternatively the different sub-category boundaries can be viewed below as PDF files.
Maps
- Residential – (PDF 1Mb)
- Business – (PDF 1Mb)
To view PDF files you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer. Get Acrobat Reader Now. PDF Accessibility.
At any time, a ratepayer may apply to Council to have a land category and sub-category reviewed.
The “Re-Categorisation” Form can be found on the Ratepayer Forms page.
Categorisation of Land: Change of Category & Sub-Category
The ratepayer must notify Council within thirty (30) days when a land category changes from one category to another.
Appeal Against Declaration of Category
If you are dissatisfied with Council's declaration of the category of your land after it has been reviewed, or the date of the category of your land is to take effect, you may appeal to the Land and Environment Court within 30 days after the declaration is made, under Section 526 of the Local Government Act 1993.
Land Valuations
The land values assigned for rating purposes are supplied by the Valuer General's Office. These valuations are made every two years (approximately).
Appeals Against Land Valuations
Any objections or appeals regarding the valuation of the land value must be directed to the Valuer General's Office. Whether or not an objection is pending, the rates levied must be paid by the due date indicated on the front of your Rate Notice.
Click here to visit the Land and Property Information (LPI) NSW Office.
Land Exempt from Rates
Certain land is exempt from rating (referred to as "Non-Rateable Land").
In order to be eligible for exemption from rating (Non-Rateable Land) your parcel of land must be one of the following categories, as stipulated in the Local Government Act, 1993, they include;
- Churches
- Minister's residences
- Schools
- Public Land
- Hospitals
- Land owned and used by Public Charities and certain other land as provided in the provisions of the section 555 of the Local Government Act, 1993.
You may apply to have your property exempt from rating, or appeal Council's decision, in the Land and Environment Court.
Further information regarding non-rateable land may be obtained from the City on 02 9265 9333.
Postponed Rates
You may apply for a postponement of rates if you are the person responsible for paying rates for land on which there is a single dwelling house, that is used or occupied as such;
or
You are the person responsible for paying the rates for land, which is capable of subdivision and on which there is a single dwelling house that is used or occupied as such;
but - because of its zoning or permitted use, is valued for rating purposes in a way that reflects its zoning or permitted use, rather than its actual use.
The rates postponed relate to the portion of the value that the Valuer General determines is related to its zoned or permitted use.
If you wish to discuss whether you are eligible to receive the benefit of postponed rates, or would like an application form to be sent to you, please phone the City on 02 9265 9333.
Mixed Development Land
In general, Mixed Development rating allows for a property to receive a combination of Residential and Business rates (providing a form of rating relief - in most cases) due to the property having dual usage.
For example, a residential property may also double as a corner shop, or doctor's surgery, or solicitor's office. Therefore, the residential and business rates will be levied, according to the proportion that each usage has to the whole of the property.
Previously, Mixed Development land was categorised according to its dominant use. Therefore, if a property was used for dual purposes of (for example) a residence and a corner shop, and the corner shop was determined to be the dominant use, the property would have been categorised and rated as business.
The Local Government Act, 1993 was amended during 1997, by the Local Government Amendment Act, 1997, which provided for Mixed Development rating and took effect from 1 July 1997.
The amendment allows a parcel of land occupied, or used solely as one building comprising a residence and a business, to be considered for Mixed Development rating, if it can be separately occupied for both business and residential purposes. If it is not currently occupied, or used; it must be constructed, or adapted, or designed, so that it can be separately occupied for both residential and business purposes.
The Valuer General's Department supplies Council with a Mixed Development Apportionment Factor (MDAF), for land subject to Mixed Development rating.
The MDAF is determined by calculating the proportion that the rental value of the business part, bears to the rental value of the land as a whole. The result is expressed as a percentage.
Rates and charges are apportioned according to the MDAF. If, for example, a parcel of mixed development land has an MDAF of 60%, rates and charges would be apportioned as: Residential 40% and Business 60%.
Any additional information you may require regarding Mixed Development rating, can be obtained by contacting the City on 02 9265 9333.
Aggregation of Multiple Lots
When purchasing a property, an owner may find their car space and/or storage lot is identified on a different lot to their unit. Under the normal rating process, the unit, carspace and storage lot will all be rated separately. The car space/storage lots will also attract the relevant sub-category business rate minimum.
An individual can however apply to council to have multiple lots aggregated for rating purposes. This will normally lead to a substantial saving to the property owner. To qualify for this aggregation process, the unit and storage lot/carspace must all be used/occupied by the same person.
For further information, please contact the City on 02 9265 9333.
Domestic Waste Management Charge
Council must levy a separate charge for domestic waste management services. The cost of these services cannot be financed from ordinary rates and the charge must be sufficient to recover the reasonable costs of providing the services.
Domestic waste management charges include garbage, clean-up and recycling services.
Domestic waste management charges are exempt from Goods and Services Tax (GST), under Division 81, determination entitled A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) (Exempt Taxes, Fees and Charges) Determination 2001.
Name Change on the Rate Notice
If you have changed your name that appears on your Rate Notice (example, by way of marriage or Deed Poll), you must contact the Land and Property Information (LPI) NSW office.
The Land and Property Information (LPI) NSW office will require a copy of all supporting documentations to process the alteration to your name.
The Land and Property Information (LPI) NSW office will alter the deeds and notify Council.
Goods and Services Tax (GST)
Council Rates and Domestic Waste Service charges are all exempt from the GST in accordance with A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) (Exempt Taxes, Fees and Charges) Determination 2001 (No 4) Division 81.
Section 603 Certificates
Solicitors, real estate agents and members of the public may make an application for a certificate accompanied by the approved fee.
Section 603 Certificates: Fees
There is a statutory fee of $60.00 payable for each Section 603 certificate. GST is not applicable.
Section 603 Certificates: Processing Time and Ordering
The usual processing time for a Section 603 certificate is between 24-48 hours from the date of receipt and payment. The certificate may be ordered through the mail, or over the counter at Council's One Stop Shop and Neighbourhood Service Centres.
Last Updated: Friday 2 October, 2009