The Minister of Economy and Finance, Mr. Mohammed BOUSSAID chaired January 26th , 2015 in Rabat, a presentation of the reference data of the price of real estate transactions for the city of Casablanca. This meeting, attended by Mr. Driss EL AZAMI EL IDRISSI, Minister Delegate in charge of the Budget, Mr. Abdellatif ZAGHNOUN, Director General of Taxation, the representatives of the developers, the Land Registry and Notaries, was characterized by the presence of representatives of a large number of media outlets.
In his speech, the Minister specified that the development of the reference data of the price of real estate transactions comes to answer the government orientations and the recommendations of the National Conferences on Taxation aiming at the consolidation of the trust relationships with taxpayers, established in a spirit of partnership and transparency.
"I think that this innovative action resulting from the recommendations of the meetings on taxation is a big step towards the simplification and the smoothing of relations between the Directorate General of taxes and taxpayers, but primarily another building block in place to the development of trust with its partners, citizens and companies/taxpayers and users", stated Mr. BOUSSAID.
The Minister also stressed that the consolidation and strengthening of transparency and trust are a priority for the Ministry whose signs have increased since almost a year through in particular:
- Redevelopment of the third-party notification procedure (ATD);
- Permanent work for the adjustments of public finances and rebalancing of the macroeconomic framework to strengthen our optimism for the future;
- The smooth implementation of the State budget for the year 2014, without any disruption, and the suggestion provided for gradually discharge the arrears of some public establishments and enterprises;
- The acceleration of the reforms (LOF, compensation and soon the retirement system) with a view to eliminating all the risks that could impact, in the future, our economy and public finances;
- Progressive tax reform in a stable framework to give visibility to economic operators, investors and the business world;
- And finally, the last exchange amnesty process, which because of its great performance confirms the return of mutual trust between public authorities and citizens.
In addition, the Minister of Economy and Finance presented the main objectives of establishing a reference data of the real estate transactions, namely:
- Improve relationships with taxpayers;
- regulate the authorities' discretion;
- Accelerate the purchasing and sale procedures of real estates;
- Improve transparency;
- Consolidate tax equity for the standardization of the treatments as regards price adjustments.
Initiated and controlled by the Directorate General of Taxation, the development of this reference data brought together in a participatory approach, several partners who carried out experiments in the evaluation of real estate market trends: the National Agency for the land registration, cadastre and cartography, the National Federation of real estate developers, Bank Al Maghrib, the Inspectorate of Casablanca planning, Casablanca urban Agency, and this under a sustained process of dialogue and exchanges.
The reference data, now finalized, consists of an evolving and updated grid of land and property market, based on the administrative unit of the region and setting prices in smaller areas within different districts
The prices used in this reference data are, in fact, the average prices observed in the same area and the same type of item. These are minimum prices used by the administration to clear up duties and taxes.
It is clear that the taxpayer is free to challenge these prices before the committees and court proceedings in accordance with the legal procedures provided for this purpose.
Casablanca was chosen as a pilot site for the implementation of this project.
This reference system is evolving. On the basis of monitoring its implementation and according to the same spirit of cooperation prevailed during its development, a periodic update will be insured both for providing adjustments as well as for taking account of the evolution of the real estate market.