The owners of vacant or derelict Melbourne sites, such as the Argus Building and the Savoy Tavern, could be charged higher rates from next year.

The city council's Future of Melbourne Committee unanimously supported Councillor Ken Ong's motion to implement a policy to apply differential rates "to sites defined as vacant or derelict".

Owners of vacant or derelict Melbourne sites could be charged higher rates from next year. Credit:Brockwell Perks

The council agreed to present a report with recommendations on how the policy would be applied to the committee on June 11.

This would include possible levels for rate hikes, a list of sites that would "fall under the categories of vacant or derelict" and guidelines for the categories.