A €4.2m drop in tax revenue from Gozo, Malta, has been attributed to a decrease in property sales, according to the finance ministry.

The drop in sales led to a corresponding decrease in capital gains revenue, leading to a total -26% drop in collected income taxes in Gozo, from €16.2m in 2007 to €12m in 2008.

In fact income from capital gains taxes alone – which is paid on profits from property sales – in Gozo decreased from an all time high of €8.1m in 2007, to €5.2m in 2008, according to Malta Today.

Between January and March 2009, capital gains taxes from Gozo contributed a mere €1.3m to the government coffers, an indication that the number of property transfers remains low on the sister island.