What options do you as a property owner have when your Municipality reclassifies your property description?

As of late we’ve been inundated with enquiries from religious institutions whose property description has been altered or changed.  This brings about property taxes which previously would not have been charged or payable and, in some cases, the religious institutions are charged retrospectively, leading to exorbitant amounts becoming due and payable to the Municipality or the City.  Failure to pay these charges may lead to disconnection of services.

Should the Municipality change your property description you as property owner, and rates and taxpayer, have the following legal remedies.

You could challenge the validity of the re-classification under the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act 3 of 2000 (“PAJA”). The Municipality reclassifying your property is an Administrative Action and therefore needs to comply with PAJA. Complying with PAJA requires that the Administrative Action needs to be lawful, reasonable and procedurally fair. If reclassification happens without notice, reasons or an opportunity to object, it may render the Administrative Action invalid.

You, as a property owner could also use PAJA, to request written reasons why your property’s classification was changed and on what facts the Municipality relied to make a reclassification of the property.

Furthermore, a property owner whose property has been reclassified may lodge a formal objection to the Municipality under the Municipal Property Rates Act 6 of 2004. In this objection the property owner must give reasons and possibly proof as to why the property should be reclassified as it was and should not be reclassified as the Municipality has done.

Lastly, if urgent relief is required, a property owner whose property has been reclassified may approach a court on an urgent basis for an urgent interdict, to set aside the reclassification of the property pending a PAJA review or formal objection under the Municipal Property Rates Act 6 of 2004.