Local Tax Act

If a person listed in each of the following items intends to transfer the land specified in the relevant item, transfers that land within the period ending on the day on which two years elapse from a day determined by the mayor of the municipality on the basis of that mayor's finding of that fact (hereinafter in this paragraph referred to as the "fact-recognition date") (or, where the mayor of the municipality finds that the period required for developing large-scale building land ordinarily exceeds two years, or that there is some other unavoidable reason for extending that period, a reasonable period determined by the mayor on the application of the person liable for tax; and, for a transfer of land specified in item (ii) or (iii) (excluding, for a transfer of land specified in item (ii), a transfer made to compensate for a loss with land under Article 82 of the Expropriation of Land Act) where the fact-recognition date for the transfer of that land is a day after the day specified in those items (referred to as a "specified transfer" in paragraph (3)), the period from that fact-recognition date to the day on which two years elapse after the day specified in those items; hereinafter in this paragraph referred to as the "period for exemption from tax liability"), and receives confirmation from the mayor of the municipality that the transfer of that land has taken place, the municipality is to exempt the person from the tax liability relating to the local government levies relating to the special land holding tax on that land (limited to those relating to the period for exemption from tax liability).

Landowner, etc.: transfer of the following land

a transfer of land to the State or a local government (excluding that listed in (b));

a transfer of land by gift that constitutes a donation relating to the donations prescribed in Article 37, paragraph (3), item (i) of the Corporation Tax Act and is specified by Cabinet Order;

a transfer of land to the Urban Renaissance Agency, a public land development corporation, or any other corporation equivalent to these that is specified by Cabinet Order as having the purpose of carrying out operations of supplying building land or houses or of acquiring land in advance, where the land relating to the transfer is found to be directly necessary for carrying out those operations (excluding, where it is a transfer of land to a public land development corporation, a transfer of land specified by Cabinet Order);

a transfer of land that contributes to the supply of building land and is specified by Cabinet Order;

a transfer of land to the Private Urban Development Promotion Organization referred to in Article 3, paragraph (1) of the Act on Special Measures Concerning the Promotion of Urban Development by Private Sectors (Act No. 62 of 1987), where the land relating to the transfer is found to be directly necessary for carrying out the operations prescribed in Article 14, paragraph (2), item (i) of the Supplementary Provisions of that Act.

A person who carries out a project for which land or houses may be expropriated (hereinafter in this paragraph referred to as a "public works project"): the transfer, to a person whose real property has been expropriated for use in that public works project, a person who has transferred real property to the person carrying out that public works project for use in that public works project, or a person who has received relocation compensation for a house built on land expropriated or transferred for use in that public works project, of land that the mayor of the municipality finds to be a substitute for the real property that was expropriated or transferred, or in respect of which relocation compensation was received (hereinafter in this item referred to as "expropriated real property, etc.") (limited to land specified by Cabinet Order as corresponding to that expropriated real property, etc.) (where the transfer is not made to compensate for a loss with land under Article 82 of the Expropriation of Land Act, limited to a transfer of land made within two years from the day on which that real property was expropriated or transferred, or the contract for relocation compensation for that house was concluded)

A public land development corporation or the Urban Renaissance Agency: where these acquire, in place of a person carrying out a public works project, real property for use in that public works project, the transfer, to a person who has transferred real property for use in that public works project to them, or a person who has received relocation compensation for a house built on the land relating to that transfer, of land that the mayor of the municipality finds to be a substitute for the real property so transferred or in respect of which relocation compensation was received (hereinafter in this item referred to as "bought-up real property, etc.") (limited to land specified by Cabinet Order as corresponding to that bought-up real property, etc.) (limited to a transfer of land made within two years from the day on which that real property was transferred, or the contract for relocation compensation for that house was concluded)

The provisions of paragraphs (2) to (10) of the preceding Article apply mutatis mutandis to the case referred to in the preceding paragraph.

Notwithstanding the preceding paragraph, the provisions of paragraphs (2) and (4) of the preceding Article as applied mutatis mutandis under paragraph (2) do not apply to a specified transfer.

A municipality is to exempt land owned by an owner of land, the acquisition of which falls under an acquisition to which Articles 73-27-3 to 73-27-5 apply or another acquisition specified by Cabinet Order as similar to these, and which is specified by Cabinet Order among those, from the tax liability relating to the local government levies relating to the special land holding tax imposed on land.

A municipality is to exempt an acquisition of land that falls under an acquisition to which Articles 73-27-3 to 73-27-5 apply or another acquisition specified by Cabinet Order as similar to these, from the tax liability relating to the local government levies relating to the special land holding tax imposed on the acquisition of land.

The mayor of the municipality is to defer the collection of the local government levies relating to the special land holding tax on the land concerned, for a period specified by Cabinet Order of not more than five years from the date of acquisition of that land, if a landowner, etc. reports that the provisions of the preceding two paragraphs are to apply and that report is found to be true.

The provisions of Article 601, paragraphs (5) to (10) apply mutatis mutandis to the deferral of collection and its cancellation in the case referred to in the preceding paragraph, and to the refund of the local government levies relating to that special land holding tax.

If a mayor of the municipality has determined that land owned by a landowner, etc. falls under any of the lands listed in the following items and that the use of that land conforms to planned land use in the surrounding area including that land, in light of the land use basic plan of that municipality (meaning the land use basic plan under Article 9, paragraph (1) of the National Land Use Planning Act (Act No. 92 of 1974)), urban planning and other plans concerning land use, the municipality is to exempt the person from the tax liability relating to the local government levies relating to the special land holding tax on that land.

Land used as the site of an office, shop or other building or structure that conforms to the standards specified by Cabinet Order as standards for buildings or structures whose structure, state of use and other aspects make them suitable for permanent use (excluding land falling under the following item);

Land used for a facility such as a factory facility or sports ground facility or other facility (limited to one composed of buildings, structures and other structures and the land used integrally with them; referred to as a "specified facility" in this item and paragraph (1) of the following Article) that conforms to the standards specified by Cabinet Order as standards for specified facilities whose state of development, state of use and other aspects make them suitable for permanent use.

A landowner, etc. who wishes to receive the application of the provisions of the preceding paragraph must, by the due date for payment under Article 599, paragraph (1) (where the due date for payment has been extended, the extended due date for payment; the same applies hereinafter in this Section), file with the mayor of the municipality an application to the effect that the provisions of the preceding paragraph are to apply to the special land holding tax on that land; provided, however, that this does not apply to land for which a determination under that paragraph or a confirmation under paragraph (1) of the following Article has already been obtained, where there has been no change in the circumstances relating to that determination or confirmation and no change in the owner of that land.

A determination under paragraph (1) is to be made only where an application under the main clause of the preceding paragraph has been filed or where the case falls under the proviso to that paragraph.

When the mayor of the municipality has made a determination under paragraph (1), or has decided not to make that determination, the mayor must notify the landowner, etc. of the land concerned of that fact without delay; provided, however, that this does not apply when making a determination under paragraph (1) for land falling under the proviso to paragraph (2).

The mayor of the municipality is to defer, for the period from the due date for payment under Article 599, paragraph (1) to the day on which the determination under paragraph (1) is made (where a decision not to make a determination under that paragraph has been made, the day on which the notification under the preceding paragraph is given), the collection of the local government levies (excluding the portion for which collection is deferred under Article 601, paragraph (3) or (4) (including where these provisions are applied mutatis mutandis under Article 602, paragraph (2)) or paragraph (3) of the preceding Article) relating to the special land holding tax on the land relating to an application under the main clause of paragraph (2), or on land for which a determination under paragraph (1) or a confirmation under paragraph (1) of the following Article has already been obtained, if an application under the main clause of paragraph (2) has been filed, or if there has been no change in the circumstances relating to a determination under paragraph (1) or a confirmation under paragraph (1) of the following Article already obtained for the land and no change in the owner of that land; provided, however, that this does not apply where it is clear that that land falls under none of the lands listed in the items of paragraph (1).

The provisions of Article 586, paragraph (4) and Article 601, paragraphs (7) to (9) apply mutatis mutandis to the case referred to in paragraph (1).

Procedures for an application under paragraph (2) and other matters necessary for the application of the provisions of paragraphs (1) to (5) are specified by Cabinet Order.

If a landowner, etc. intends to use, or to have another person use, land that he or she owns as land falling under the provisions of paragraph (1) of the preceding Article (referred to as "tax-exempt land" in this paragraph), and within the period ending on the day on which two years elapse from a date set by the mayor of the municipality on the basis of that mayor's determination of that fact (or, where the mayor of the municipality finds that the period required for constructing the building or structure or developing the specified facility relating to that determination ordinarily exceeds two years, or that there is some other unavoidable reason for extending that period, a reasonable period of not more than five years set by the mayor on the application of the landowner, etc.; referred to as the "period for exemption from tax liability" in this paragraph) the land is used, or made available for use, as tax-exempt land and the mayor of the municipality confirms that that use has begun, the municipality is to exempt the person from the tax liability relating to the local government levies relating to the special land holding tax on that land (limited to those relating to the period for exemption from tax liability, and excluding those relating to that period after the date of the mayor's confirmation).

The provisions of Article 601, paragraphs (2) through (9) apply mutatis mutandis to the case referred to in the preceding paragraph. In this case, the phrase "the period for exemption from tax liability (including, where the period for exemption from tax liability has been extended under this paragraph, that extended period; the same applies hereinafter in this paragraph)" in paragraph (2) of that Article is deemed to be replaced with "the period for exemption from tax liability prescribed in Article 603-2-2, paragraph (1)", the phrase "a reasonable period determined by the mayor" is deemed to be replaced with "a reasonable period of not more than five years determined by the mayor", the phrase "may extend" is deemed to be replaced with "may extend only once", and the phrase "the period for exemption from tax liability (including that extended period where the period for exemption from tax liability has been extended under that paragraph)" in paragraph (4) of that Article is deemed to be replaced with "the period for exemption from tax liability prescribed in Article 603-2-2, paragraph (1)".

Procedures for the determination and confirmation under paragraph (1) and other matters necessary for the application of the provisions of the preceding two paragraphs are specified by Cabinet Order.