When do I file for Florida’s homestead exemption?

Filing deadline

March 1

Maximum 2026 exemption

$51,411

2026 Save Our Homes cap

2.7%

The January 1 rule

Florida looks at one date: January 1. To qualify for a given year you must hold title to the home on January 1 and, in good faith, make it your permanent residence by then (Fla. Stat. § 196.031). The application is due by March 1 of that same year (Fla. Stat. § 196.011). Close on January 2 and you wait until the following January 1 to qualify. Not filing by March 1 waives the exemption for that year, unless you qualify for the late-filing process below.

1. Step 1 · Close and move inOwn it and live in itTitle in your name and the home is your permanent residence on or before January 1.
2. Step 2 · By March 1File your applicationApply online, by mail or in person with the Palm Beach County Property Appraiser.
3. Step 3 · That fallSee it on your tax billYour August TRIM notice and November tax bill show the exemption and your capped value.

What the exemption is worth

A Florida homestead gets two exemptions from its assessed value. The first $25,000 is exempt from all property taxes, including school taxes. A second exemption applies to assessed value above $50,000 and covers every tax except school district taxes. Voters in 2024 tied that second exemption to inflation: it is $26,411 for 2026, according to the Florida Department of Revenue. Value between $25,000 and $50,000 stays taxable. For a home assessed at $76,411 or more, the total is $51,411 off non-school taxes and $25,000 off school taxes.

Worked example

A homestead with a 2026 assessed value of $400,000. The exemption amounts are the 2026 figures; your tax rates depend on where you live.

Multiply each taxable value by the matching tax rates on your bill to see the savings. The property tax estimator does this for Palm Beach County addresses.

The Save Our Homes cap

Once your home has a homestead exemption, Florida’s Save Our Homes rule limits how much its assessed value can rise each year: by 3% or the change in the Consumer Price Index, whichever is lower (Fla. Const. art. VII, § 4(d); Fla. Stat. § 193.155). The Department of Revenue set the 2026 limit at 2.7%. The cap starts the year after your first homestead year, when the home is assessed at full market value. Over time the gap between market value and assessed value can grow large, which is why a buyer’s tax bill is often much higher than the seller’s: a sale resets the assessment to market value the following January 1.

Example: a homestead assessed at $400,000 for 2025 could be assessed at no more than $410,800 for 2026, even if its market value rose more than that.

Portability: taking your savings to your next home

If you move from one Florida homestead to another, you can carry some of your Save Our Homes savings with you. You qualify if you had a homestead exemption as of January 1 of any of the three years before you establish the new homestead. You can transfer up to $500,000 of the difference between the old home’s market value and its assessed value. If the new home is worth less than the old one, the benefit is reduced in proportion. You apply by filing the portability form (DR-501T) with your homestead application for the new home, by the same March 1 deadline.

How to file in Palm Beach County

File with the Palm Beach County Property Appraiser’s Office online, by mail or in person at one of its service centers. Have these ready for every owner who lives in the home:

• Social Security numbers for each owner applying and their spouse.
• A Florida driver license or ID card showing the homestead address.
• One more proof of residency, such as a Florida vehicle registration, voter registration, declaration of domicile, federal tax return or utility bills.
• Proof of permanent residency if you are not a U.S. citizen.
• Form DR-501T if you are transferring Save Our Homes savings from a previous Florida homestead.

Questions go to the Property Appraiser’s exemption team at 561-355-2866 or myexemption@pbcpao.gov.

If you missed March 1

Florida allows a late application if you were otherwise eligible. You must file it with the Property Appraiser within 25 days after the Truth in Millage (TRIM) notices are mailed in August, and the Property Appraiser can grant it if you show extenuating circumstances (Fla. Stat. § 196.011(9)). If the Property Appraiser denies it, you can petition the Value Adjustment Board within the same 25 days; the filing fee is $15. Missing the deadline because of a postal error is handled separately and must be clearly documented.

On the November 3, 2026 ballot

Amendment 3 was passed by the Legislature and filed with the Secretary of State in June 2026. Its official ballot statement says it would exempt the first $250,000 of a homestead’s value from all property taxes other than school district taxes and require, through general law, a schedule for full elimination of those taxes. It would also lower the cap on yearly assessment increases for non-homestead property. People who establish Florida residency after January 1, 2027 would have to keep it for five years before receiving the increased exemption. It needs approval from 60% of voters and, if approved, would take effect January 1, 2027. It would not change the March 1 filing deadline. Everything else on this page describes the law in effect today.

Frequently asked questions