To help pay for the $42m compo to paid out to pier operators Andrews arranged to charge Land Tax on leasehold bayside Bathing Boxes. Trouble is the Land Tax Bills have been produced in error. Looks like the upcoming Vic Budget will be short some Land Tax.
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Beach box owners sent massive tax bills in error
The state government has incorrectly billed owners of the colourful beach boxes and those who have already paid their bill now face a fight to have it refunded.
Lucy Callander and
Shannon Deery
March 19, 2024 - 7:26AM Herald Sun
Beach box owners around Port Phillip Bay have been incorrectly issued with land tax bills of up to $5k.
Hundreds of owners of the colourful beach boxes from Brighton through to the Mornington Peninsula have been hit with massive bills for the first time in recent weeks.
It comes after the state government made changes to
land tax laws as part of last year’s budget in a bid to claw back billions of dollars.
An estimated 10 per cent of the state’s 2800 beach box owners have now been issued with
land tax bills.
Hundreds of owners of the colourful beach boxes from Brighton through to the Mornington Peninsula have copped the bills in error. Picture: Tony Gough
One bill, seen by the Herald Sun, showed a $975 bill applied to a $185,000 land valuation for a single beach box.
It comes despite previous advice from the State Revenue Office that land tax could not be applied to beach boxes.
On Monday evening the state government admitted some tax bills had been issued in error.
A spokesperson said a number of beach boxes on Crown land had incorrectly assessed for land tax despite being occupied under a license agreement.
The previous advice from the State Revenue Office was that land tax could not be applied to beach boxes. Picture: Tony Gough
The SRO was working to identify which customers may have been affected.
They said anyone who received a land tax assessment notice for their beach box under a licence agreement should contact the SRO directly.
The issue was first highlighted by Brighton MP James Newbury on Monday.
“Jacinta Allan is such a dud Premier, that Labor is now charging people land tax for land they don’t even own. Watch out, Labor will introduce a breathing tax next,” he said.
Under the new land tax scheme, Victorians with more than one property will pay a minimum $5000 extra in taxes over the next decade, with a new $500 annual tax for investment properties with a land value between $50,000 and $100,000.
The payment increases to $975 for properties with site values between $100,000 and $300,000, while a further 0.1 per cent of the land value will be applied to properties worth more than $300,000.
The new tax, which started in January, is set to net $4.7bn over the first four years.
“Beach box owners are licence holders, they don’t own the land, it’s Crown Land,” Mornington Peninsula Beach Box Association president Mark Davis said.
“We received a ruling from the State Revenue Office a couple of years ago stating that land tax is not applicable to beach boxes.
“It’s been a lurking issue with a few of our members being sent land tax bills over the years, but there have been many more sent over the past six weeks.
“Some of our long term senior members have been quite distraught. They are already dealing with a cost of living crisis and receiving a bill for $4000 or $5000 on top of that is a real sting in the tail.”
Mr Davis said a handful of members had already paid the bill and now faced a fight to have it refunded.
