There are individuals online (mostly claim sellers/claim scammers, by the way) who are deliberately lying to you when they say that you don't have to pay taxes on unpatented gold mining claims that you purchase from them. The truth is, you WILL HAVE TO PAY TAXES ON YOUR UNPATENTED GOLD MINING CLAIM.
These are property taxes assessed by the county assessor in whatever county your claim is located in/recorded in under the county clerk or recorder's office. Like we've all heard at one time or another, the only things that are truly inevitable are death and taxes.
I know, I know...some of you are scratching your heads and saying "What the hell? It's an unpatented claim. I only own the mineral rights, not the land itself." I understand your confusion and frustration here and empathize with you 100%.
Here's the deal however. If the county or local government can squeeze a few property tax bucks out of you they will. This includes your ownership of an unpatented claim and its mineral rights.
For example, with the Sierra County, California unpatented placer claim I own (along with my co-claimants) I'm assessed 1% for every 20-acre claim parcel I own based on a valuation of $9,700 for each claim parcel. Sierra County views N. Yuba claims as the most desirable...thus, the high valuation figure for those claims.
So, I can probably expect to pay $97.00 per 20-acres per year once the county tax assessor gets done. If you own more than 20 acres (as I do) that taxable amount will go up accordingly.
Of course, your county of claim record may handle things differently and your claim(s) may be assessed at a lower tax rate than those along the N. Yuba River. But the fact of the matter is this: you will be assessed annual taxes on your unpatented claim.
If you liked this post, you may want to read: "More on Patented/Unpatented Gold Mining Claims (Part 1)"