Leasehold property owners were happy to hear this weekend the announcement of land lease tenures being restored back to 999 years.

The Sabah State government also announced a moratorium on Native Title (NT) land taxes throughout the state until next year.

Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal said these initiatives were taken to aid the blows  of the pandemic that affected everyone.

"Not only in Nabawan [NT owners] but also throughout the state. So there is no need to go to the [land] office to pay the land tax," said Shafie while launching the proposed Nabawan Green Town project, Sapulut Tropical Forest Town, Rural Zone Food and Paulownia Community Crop Hub and handover of Nabawan district land grants at the District Council Multipurpose Hall.

“Nabawan is also not far from Kalimantan and these (factors) will bring benefits to this district,” he said.

The arrears for NT land quit rent stands at about RM3.9 million and there are 215,422 NT status lands in the state.

Meanwhile, Shafie distributed 653 NT land grants to recipients in Nabawan for lands totalling over 2,885 acres.

“Villagers have waited long for this and I hope this assistance (land grants) will help the people and at the same time aid the development of their land.

“These individual titles are different from the communal titles by the previous government where the latter cannot be handed down to their children.

“That is why when Warisan took over the government, we scrapped the communal title and replaced it with individual titles,” he said.

Furthermore, by reverting 5,978 land lease tenures from 99 years back to 999 years, leasehold property owners will be relieved, especially for those with tenures that are soon expiring.

“This will give many benefits not only to landowners but also the development on those lands.” Shafie said to the press.

Under the law they will have to apply to the relevant state authority for an extension of the lease before its expiry.

Once approval is granted, owners will have to pay a certain amount of premium for the extended tenure, which depending on the size of land, can be a tidy sum.

_References:

• _{Dailyexpress.com.my. 2020. Moratorium On NT Land Taxes Until 2021 | Daily Express Online - Sabah's Leading News Portal. [online] Available at: <http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news/157403/moratorium-on-nt-land-taxes-until-2021/> [Accessed 24 August 2020].}
  



• _{Borneo Today. 2020. NT Quit Rent Relief Until Next Year. [online] Available at: <https://www.borneotoday.net/nt-quit-rent-relief-until-next-year/> [Accessed 24 August 2020].}



• _{Borneo Today. 2020. Land Lease Tenure Restored To 999 Years. [online] Available at: <https://www.borneotoday.net/land-lease-tenure-restored-to-999-years/> [Accessed 24 August 2020].}