Tax on real estate profits…a new plan confronts brokers and warns of “noir”

The monitoring services of the General Directorate of Taxes launched a new plan to confront “brokers” and intermediaries and encourage obligatory people to pay taxes, especially those related to the tax on real estate profits (TPI). This is done by adopting tax incentives in the form of discounts on the amounts due, in order to increase the efficiency of tax collection for this category of taxes, which constitute an important resource.

Informed sources reported that the new plan was implemented in an initial phase in the suburbs of Casablanca, where an increase in the number of real estate buying and selling transactions for lands and containers covered by changes in landscaping designs that transformed large areas of them into residential areas was recorded, stressing that the new approach benefited from the procedure related to requesting prior opinion from The administration regarding the elements for determining net real estate profit, which came into effect since July of last year.

The same sources revealed to Hespress that tax inspectors received reports and data about the growing activity of “brokers” in the aforementioned areas who tried to persuade obligated persons to mediate with the tax authorities in order to enable them to obtain important tax reductions, in exchange for commissions exceeding 100 thousand dirhams, that is, more than 10 million centimes, confirming that A sensitization process at the level of notary offices and other public facilities made it possible to convince those obligated to pay their tax dues, benefit from tax reductions, and negotiate grievances regarding the basis of taxation in certain cases.

The legislator framed the new procedure regulating real estate profits through Article 234 bis four of the General Tax Code, as this procedure applies to the transfer of real estate properties or real rights associated with them, and the obligee becomes entitled, pursuant to this, to submit to the General Directorate of Taxes a request aimed at knowing the net profit imposed. The tax and the amount of tax to be paid.

The same sources confirmed that the awareness-raising process initiated by the tax control services at the level of the suburbs of Casablanca included warnings of the consequences of resorting to “noir” in real estate sales operations under the penalty of heavy tax audits that would besiege both parties with direct seizures and restrictions on assets and property, until the collection of the due tax amounts. Emphasizing that a number of obligated persons have entered into negotiations with the tax authorities to settle their status in buying and selling transactions that are currently being completed.

Regarding the basis for imposing the tax, the income tax is calculated on the profits achieved during the process of selling real estate only based on a reference price per square meter that depends on the location and nature of the property, where the transfer costs are deducted from the sale price to obtain the amount of this tax. The costs of acquiring the property, the investment expenses incurred, and the total interest amount on the loan in the event of obtaining a mortgage are calculated, and then the purchase price is evaluated on the basis of a special index.

The sources pointed out that “brokers” are using real estate agents and brokers to influence the obligors in order to mediate for them to collect tax reductions, as they share the same goal of persuading landowners to sell at low prices and obtain profitable real estate deals, taking advantage of the ignorance of some of the obligors about the new legal measures and procedures that allow them Know the tax amount on real estate profits in advance.