Which documents confirm that a property has perished

A taxpayer asked the court to hold unlawful the tax authority's charging of property tax for 2023 on properties which had in fact been demolished in 2022.

In its decision of 28 February 2025 in case No. A40-229919/24, the Commercial Court of the City of Moscow stated that the demolition of a property may be confirmed by:

• an inspection report on the property, prepared by a cadastral engineer;

• a certificate from the local administration;

• a document from the state fire-supervision authorities;

• a notice of completion of the demolition of the property;

a certificate (extract) recording that a notice of completion of the demolition of a capital construction project has been placed in the unified information system (EIS); a work order (permit) for earthworks, the installation of temporary fencing and the placement of temporary structures, issued under Moscow Government Decree No. 284-PP of 19 May 2015 and stating the date of closure.

The taxpayer produced none of that set of documents, either to the tax service or to the court. The court also found inconsistencies in the works contracts, the orders and the data submitted to state bodies.

• As a result, the court upheld the tax authority.

Where a property is demolished, ownership of it comes to an end, and with it the duty to pay property tax. Owners often find it difficult to confirm that the demolition took place on a particular date, because they do not know which documents the tax authority requires. That is what gives rise to these disputes.

We recommend that owners, when they prepare the set of documents, take account of what the courts have held in disputes of this kind. Particular care is needed so that the documents confirming the demolition of the property contain no contradictions. Andrey Rymarev, head of the tax practice at Consul Group, comments.

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