Mumbai’s civic body, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), is on track to meet its property tax target for the financial year 2024-25, having already collected Rs 6,011 crore or 97% of the revised target of Rs 6,200 crore by the morning of March 31. The collection this year is the highest ever recorded by the BMC, surpassing the previous year's total of Rs. 4,856 crore, which was lower due to delayed bill issuance.
BMC officials are confident that by the end of the day, the remaining 3% of the target will be met. A significant portion of this year’s collection includes overdue payments from the previous year, where property tax bills had been issued but were not settled on time, contributing over Rs. 1,600 crore to this year’s collection.
In the 2025-26 civic budget, the property tax revenue target for FY 2024-25 was revised upward to Rs. 6,200 crore, an increase from the earlier projection of Rs. 4,950 crore. For the upcoming financial year (2025-26), the BMC has proposed a target of Rs. 5,200 crore. Property tax remains the largest source of revenue for the BMC, with taxes collected from over 9 lakh properties across Mumbai.
The abolition of octroi and the introduction of GST led to a shift in the city’s revenue reliance, placing greater emphasis on property tax collections. Former BMC corporator Ravi Raja emphasized that collections could rise further if the BMC took stronger action against tax defaulters, including large companies, mills, and developers who delay payments. He suggested that BMC could seize properties of persistent defaulters, using the collected funds for the benefit of Mumbai residents.
Interestingly, BMC has not increased property tax rates since 2015, although rules mandate rate hikes every five years. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the proposed rate increase was deferred, and subsequent attempts to raise rates have been stayed by the government.