Today was my day for dealing with the remaining bureaucracy involved in closing off the rental tax for this year. Dread!
But first a very nice get together with Wilma and John to just run through arrangements for the letting season ahead and to catch up on what’s been going on over the winter. They take very good care of the house for us and Wilma is great with our guests and we always get good feedback. So lucky to have them.
By late morning I set off for Kyrenia. First stop was the big main police station which has a section for immigration work. Northern Cyprus has copied the Turkish system where all immigration matters come under the police and the army. It’s around the rear of the station and there are manned windows for different sorts of query ie residency and Ins & Outs. Quite a few things here need an In and Out report which is a printout of all the dates you have entered or left the country together with the type of visa you were granted. I’d been asked to supply one for the tax office which together with the electricity bill for the house would be used to validate that it was only us that was in the house after the last monthly let paid, or that the house was empty. First, though I had to call at the little cafe outside the police station and buy the necessary stamp for the report which was 50tl – about £1.
Then I went round to the windows and just as I got there, the policewoman saw me, said something and shut the window. It turned out I’d arrived just as they were closing for a lunch break! Anyway, there were two young Pakistani boys there already and they helped me fill in the form which you have to present to the window to get the report. Very kind of them because obviously the form was all in Turkish! About 30 minutes later, the window opened and the policewoman appeared and beckoned me forward. I gave her the form, the stamp and my passport and she told me to wait. About 5 minutes later, another window opened and a policeman handed me back my passport together with the stamped In &Out report. Step 1: Tick!
Then I drove down into town and parked and walked down to the Kib-Tek office. Kib-Tek are the electricity authority. They have 3 offices all next door to each other and it is quite mysterious as to which one you should go to. I went to the Payment Office first which turned out to be the wrong one. I did take the opportunity to find out the procedure for getting the name on our electricity bill changed. We’ve never done it as it’s been complicated before but I thought I would find out. Apparently now you have to supply a photocopy of your passport, the title deed and hand over £200. Seems expensive to change a name….. but I think we’ll do it when we’re next here for a longer visit. I went to the second office and the man in there gave me a copy of our electricity readings and payments for the last 7 months. That was free!!
Back to the car and drove to the hospital area where the hell-hole tax office is located. In fact it was quite late by now – about 2pm and they close at 3. It was much quieter than in the morning when I usually visit. The chap I spoke to who was trying to avoid giving me a Little Punishment was on the desk and he welcomed me back. Really a bit strange but very nice. I gave him the two reports and he examined them and then agreed we were all paid up to date and no fine required. Hooray! You just have to fill in the Declaration form he said. I was curious about this form. What was I declaring!? Luckily it was in English and Turkish. Basically it was a form that took details of me as landlord and the house and also the name and dates of the last tenant and the date they left and the reason why they left. As you can see, it’s not really a form that’s applicable for holiday lets, more for permanent rentals or longer term rentals. I just put “End of holiday” for that. Then I had to sign to say that the house hadn’t been rented since that date but that I would start paying tax again as soon as I got another tenant. Weird. Anyway, I filled it in and he filed it away and seemed happy. He had a look at the house on his computer and was very complimentary! And that ended that saga. All clear of assessments and possible owings for another year.
Came home for a rest! Very sunny and warm today but again a very high wind. Blowing things around in the garden. Not a day to be up a ladder dealing with billowing curtains by the pool. Deborah came up with her hem unpicker tool for me to borrow so that I can let down the very large hem on the curtains. They still won’t be quite long enough but at the end of the season I will take them into Mermaid and get a blue border strip sewn on to the bottoms to match the furniture and elongate them. No time this trip. They will just be a bit short this season.
Eating in tonight and watching tv. Finishing off the spicy dahl soup from last night. It improves with re-heating I’ve found. And got some more photos Paul the Plumber took from up high yesterday. Really nice shots of the pool and surrounding hills.
