Municipal property tax notices were recently mailed out to Lacombe County ratepayers and should be appearing in mailboxes in the coming week.
If you do not receive your 2020 tax notice by the end of June, please contact Lacombe County’s Assessment Department at 403-782-6601.
“We encourage ratepayers to be proactive and make sure their tax notice was received by Lacombe County,” said Michael Minchin, director of corporate services. “This year’s property tax payment deadline has been extended to September 30, 2020 to better align with the education requisition deadline for non-residential properties.”
The County’s tax notice is a combined assessment and tax notice.
• Anyone wishing to appeal their assessment has 60 days from the notice of assessment date to do so. A per parcel fee will be charged for people making complaints against assessments. If the Assessment Review Board decides in favour of the complainant, the fee will be refunded.
• **NEW** In 2020, the property tax payment deadline has been extended to Sept. 30th, 2020 to better align with the education requisition deadline for non-residential properties.
• Property owners who miss the tax payment deadline will have a 6 per cent penalty applied on Oct. 1st on the outstanding taxes owing. An additional 10 per cent penalty will be added on Dec. 1st for all taxes remaining unpaid after Nov. 30th.
“Like other online bill payments, there may be a processing delay for online tax payments, so people who plan to pay their taxes through electronic banking should not to leave it until the last minute,” Minchin said. “To avoid all penalties, tax payments must be received by last business day in September.”
Tax payments are payable to Lacombe County (no later than Sept. 30th), and can be made using one of the following options:
• By mail to: Lacombe County, RR3, Lacombe, AB T4L 2N3.
Mailed payments must be postmarked by Canada Post no later than Sept. 30th of the current year. If the postmark is illegible or missing, the actual date of receipt by Lacombe County will apply.
• In Person: At the County Office (40403 Rge Rd 274, Lacombe County) during office hours. Please note that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, office hours are currently restricted. Please phone ahead to confirm current hours.
• Deposited in the envelope mailbox located at the road entrance to the County office (do not submit cash).
• Electronically: through electronic payment methods, including Internet banking and for businesses, electronic funds transfer (EFT). Funds must be received in the County’s bank account no later than Sept. 30th.
• By credit card: visit www.lacombecounty.com and pay through OptionPay, a secure third-party site, to make payment by credit card. Please note that there is a fee for this service. Lacombe County does not receive any of the credit card fees.
• Tax Installment Payment Plan: those enrolled in the County’s tax installment plan {TIPPs) will see their payment adjusted to reflect the new tax rates for 2020 on their next monthly payment.
The above due date and penalties DO NOT APPLY to ratepayers enrolled in the Tax Instalment Payment Plan (TIPP), which allows property taxes to be paid on a monthly basis instead of one single payment.
Application forms for enrollment are available at the Lacombe County Administration office or on the Lacombe County web site.