March 1 is the deadline for filing all property tax exemption applications in Florida, as well as all agricultural classification applications.
No matter in which of the 67 Florida counties you own property, be certain that any property tax exemptions you may be entitled to are taken care of by that date by submitting applications to the county property appraiser. This includes the entire array of property tax exemptions including, but not limited to:
- Homestead
- Agricultural classification
- Charitable
- Educational
- Religious
- Senior living
- Affordable housing; etc.
If you have been receiving exemptions for prior years, you may not be required to fill out an annual application, but make sure that lack of requirement of annual renewal is confirmed with the respective property appraiser's office.Several legislative changes to exemption statutes have altered some of the requirements for certain types of exemptions, and broadened the scope of what entities can apply for certain exemptions.These include properties such as:
- Assisted-living facilities
- Affordable housing projects
- Solar infrastructure projects
Property appraisers around the state were issuing exemption determinations on these new statutes for the first time in 2018, and will continue to re-evaluate applications in 2019.
Upon receipt of any exemption application, the property appraiser then has until July 1 to approve or deny the exemption or classification application. The intervening four months can be spent providing additional information to the property appraiser, or answering questions each office may have. If a denial is received by July 1, an administrative appeal can be filed within 30 days of that denial.
Previously published in Orlando Business Journal.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.