Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exemption in Texas (2026)

Last reviewed September 11, 2026. Every figure, form and deadline on this page is re-checked against the state’s own government sources once a quarter, and the date above is updated when we do it.

Texas does not have one disabled veteran property tax exemption. It has three, and guides that flatten them into a single $5,000 to $12,000 table are leaving out the biggest one. If the VA rates you at 100 percent, or pays you at the 100 percent rate for individual unemployability, Tax Code section 11.131 exempts the entire appraised value of your homestead. Below 100 percent, section 11.22 gives you a fixed exemption of $5,000 to $12,000 depending on your rating tier. A third, narrower statute covers homes donated by a charity.

The $12,000 number gets repeated as if it is the ceiling for every disabled veteran in Texas. It is not. It is the top of the partial-exemption tier for veterans under 100 percent. Further down I show exactly where that confusion comes from and which statute actually applies to you.

How much is the Texas exemption worth?

Statute	Who it covers	What it exempts
Tax Code 11.131	100 percent disability rating, or compensation at the 100 percent rate for individual unemployability	Total appraised value of the residence homestead
Tax Code 11.22	Veterans rated 10 to 90 percent, plus certain surviving spouses and surviving children	$5,000 to $12,000 of assessed value, by rating tier, on any one property owned
Tax Code 11.132	Veterans rated below 100 percent whose homestead was donated by a charitable organization	A percentage of appraised value equal to the disability rating

The Tax Code 11.22 rating tiers

VA disability rating	Exemption amount up to
10% to 29%	$5,000 of the property’s value
30% to 49%	$7,500 of the property’s value
50% to 69%	$10,000 of the property’s value
70% to 100%	$12,000 of the property’s value

A veteran 65 or older with at least a 10 percent rating, or who is totally blind in one or both eyes, or who has lost the use of one or more limbs, can also qualify for the $12,000 tier under 11.22 even without a 70 percent-plus rating.

Why the $12,000 figure gets treated as the ceiling

Section 11.22 is the older, more commonly cited exemption, and its table tops out at $12,000, so a lot of guides stop there. But a veteran rated 100 percent, or paid at the 100 percent rate through individual unemployability, is not in the 11.22 table at all. They are in section 11.131, which exempts the entire appraised value, not a capped dollar figure. On a $350,000 home, 11.131 is worth far more than $12,000, and conflating the two exemptions understates what a fully rated Texas veteran is entitled to.

One more distinction worth knowing: 11.22 can be applied to any one property a veteran owns, even a rental or vacant lot, not only a homestead. 11.131 applies specifically to your residence homestead.

The 11.22 table above and its exact dollar amounts come from the Comptroller’s companion FAQ page, which also notes the rating “depends on the veteran’s disability rating from the U.S. Veterans’ Administration or the branch of the armed services in which the veteran served.” That branch-of-service language is the state’s own wording, not a guide’s mistake, but in practice appraisal districts still want your VA rating decision or award letter as documentation, so get that ready regardless of which exemption you are filing under.

Do not stop at the veteran exemption: the general homestead exemption stacks

If you are rated under 100 percent, the biggest number on your tax bill usually is not the veteran exemption at all. It is the general residence homestead exemption, and you claim it on the same Form 50-114. Texas school districts have to exempt $140,000 of your homestead’s value, and another $60,000 on top of that if you are 65 or older or you meet the state’s disabled test. Any taxing unit can also adopt a local option exemption of up to 20 percent of appraised value, which cannot be less than $5,000, and counties that collect farm-to-market road or flood control taxes have to give another $3,000 [Texas Comptroller, publication 96-1740, January 2026].

Those exemptions sit on top of your 11.22 or 11.131 exemption. A veteran rated 40 percent takes $7,500 off under 11.22 and still gets the $140,000 school district homestead exemption on the same house. I bring this up because I see veterans file 50-135 for the veteran exemption, never check the homestead boxes on 50-114, and leave the larger exemption on the table.

One catch on the extra $60,000. For that one, “disabled” does not mean your VA rating. The Comptroller is direct about it: you have to meet the definition of disabled used for Social Security disability insurance benefits, and disability benefits from any other program do not automatically qualify you. A 100 percent VA rating gets you the full 11.131 exemption, but it does not by itself get you the age 65-or-disabled homestead exemption. See the Comptroller’s property tax exemptions page for the current wording.

Who qualifies in Texas?

To claim the total exemption under section 11.131 you need:

• A 100 percent disability rating from the VA, or compensation at the 100 percent rate for individual unemployability. The Comptroller’s FAQ is explicit that you do not need both a 100 percent schedular rating and IU status; either one on its own qualifies you.
• The property must be your residence homestead.

To claim the partial exemption under section 11.22 you need a service-connected disability rating from the VA, be classified as disabled, and be a Texas resident. This one is not limited to a homestead, it can apply to any one property you own.

A disabled veteran can also separately qualify for the general disabled-person exemption if they meet that test, and an eligible veteran can hold both a homestead exemption and a 11.131 or 11.22 exemption at the same time on the same property.

Surviving spouses and children

An unremarried surviving spouse of a veteran who qualified, or would have qualified, for the 11.131 total exemption keeps it, as long as the property was and remains their residence homestead. If that spouse moves, the new home does not automatically get a full exemption. It carries over the same dollar amount the household was receiving on the old home, which can be less than a full exemption on the new property’s value.

Section 11.22 has its own, separate surviving-spouse and surviving-child provisions, and section 11.133 gives an unremarried surviving spouse of a service member killed or fatally injured in the line of duty a full exemption on their own. If your spouse died on active duty, ask your appraisal district which of these applies, since more than one can be in play.

If your spouse died of a PACT Act condition, the rating at death does not matter

This is the provision most guides still leave out, and it is the one I get asked about most by widows and widowers. Under Tax Code 11.136, the unremarried surviving spouse of a veteran who died as a result of a qualifying condition or disease gets a total exemption on their residence homestead regardless of the veteran’s disability rating at the time of death. So a spouse who was told “he was only rated 30 percent, you do not qualify” may still qualify under this section. The qualifying conditions and diseases are the ones in the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our PROMISE to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act of 2022, the PACT Act (Pub. L. No. 117-168), or a regulation adopted under it that establishes a presumption of service connection. You file it on Form 50-114, the same residence homestead application [Texas Comptroller, publication 96-1740, January 2026].

If you inherited the home and you are not on the deed

Texas has a route for this, and it comes up constantly on files where a veteran or a surviving spouse lives in a home that was never retitled. It is called heir property: property acquired by will, transfer on death deed, or intestacy where at least one owner claims it as a residence homestead. If you are not named as the homestead owner on a recorded instrument, you can still claim the exemption by giving the appraisal district an affidavit establishing your ownership interest, a copy of the prior owner’s death certificate, a copy of the property’s most recent utility bill, and a citation of any court record about your ownership if one exists [Texas Comptroller, publication 96-1740, January 2026]. Any other heir living there as a principal residence has to sign an affidavit authorizing the application.

Worth knowing for the loan side too: unclear title is one of the most common reasons a home like this cannot be refinanced. Clearing it up with the appraisal district and the county clerk usually helps both problems at once.

Deployed, PCS’d or in a care facility? You keep the homestead exemption

Normally a Texas homeowner who stops living in the home loses the residence homestead exemption if the absence runs longer than two years. That two-year limit does not apply to homeowners in military service inside or outside the United States, or to someone in a facility providing services related to health, infirmity or aging, as long as they do not establish a different principal residence and intend to return [Texas Comptroller, publication 96-1740, January 2026]. A long deployment or an unaccompanied tour should not cost you the exemption. If your appraisal district removes it anyway, that is the provision to point at.

Can the exemption be used before closing?

Texas is more forgiving on timing than most states, but ownership and qualifying status on January 1 still control the default rule. Texas law gives you a real advantage other states do not: if you become eligible for the 11.131 total exemption partway through the year, you get the exemption immediately for the rest of that tax year on the home you already own. And if a 100 percent veteran moves to a new residence homestead mid-year, the exemption can start immediately on the new home too, with tax due only for the part of the year before it started. That is a meaningfully better rule than Ohio’s hard January 1 cutoff.

The catch for a purchase in progress: the appraisal district has to actually process your application before the exemption shows up on the roll for that property, and a lender qualifying you for a mortgage is looking at the tax bill as it exists at underwriting, not a projected future bill.

Four states put a pre-purchase determination in the statute. Texas is not one of them

State rule. Four states let a qualifying veteran get something in writing from the taxing authority before they own the home:

• Virginia: file the normal exemption paperwork plus documentation of the purchase agreement and the commissioner of the revenue must process it and send an approval or denial letter, with the exemption amount, within 20 business days. Va. Code § 58.1-3219.6(B). The exemption itself takes effect only after you become the owner.
• Maryland: you may apply for a specific dwelling you intend to purchase, and the Department of Assessments and Taxation must send a preliminary approval or denial, with the amount, within 15 business days. Md. Code, Tax-Property § 7-208(d)(5). No second application is needed once you own it.
• Utah: a qualifying disabled veteran claimant may apply before owning the residence with a real estate purchase contract, filed in the county where the home sits, and the county must send a receipt with preliminary approval or denial and the calculated amount within 15 business days. Utah Code § 59-2a-502(5).
• Alabama: for closings on or after October 1, 2026, the tax assessing official issues a tentative certificate of permanent and total disability before purchase, within 20 days, and the statute says a settlement agent or loan closing officer may not consider the homestead ad valorem taxes when calculating debt-to-income once you hand over that certificate. Ala. Code § 40-9-21.3.

One correction worth having, because it gets repeated a lot: outside of Alabama these laws bind the county or the state tax office, not your lender. They force the taxing authority to answer you in writing before closing. They do not order a lender to waive or exclude the tax. Alabama is the only one of the four that reaches into the loan file itself. North Carolina has a bill that would add a prequalification process, House Bill 94, which passed the House 112 to 0 in May 2025 and has sat in Senate Rules since. It is not law, so do not plan around it.

In Texas it is a lender decision, so shop it

Lender overlay and market practice. There is no Texas statute telling the taxing authority to pre-approve you before you own the home, so whether this benefit helps you qualify comes down to lender policy. Here is what that looks like in practice, from lender guidance we collected directly in August 2026:

• Some lenders will use the reduced tax figure before closing, and some will not. One wholesale lender told us plainly it will consider a veteran real estate tax exemption and a reduced property tax number in the qualifying payment, as long as underwriting gets the local exemption rules and proof you meet them. If the documentation is short, underwriting uses the full tax amount instead. Another wholesaler checks it state by state and county by county on every single closing. If your lender says no, that is not the final answer on the benefit. It is that lender’s answer. Ask another one.
• Every lender will require proof of eligibility if the lower tax is doing work in your file. If the reduced tax is what lowers your debt ratio or raises your residual income, expect to document it: your VA rating decision or award letter showing the qualifying disability, the taxing authority’s own published exemption rules, and usually the completed exemption application. One lender’s VA guide requires proof of 100 percent disability from VA plus a copy of the completed county application for property tax exemption, and where the application has to be notarized it takes an unsigned copy up front and conditions it to be signed at closing.

Overlays cut both ways. One large investor allows the anticipated reduced tax for qualifying only for primary residences in California, Florida, Maryland, Texas, Utah and Virginia, and only with proof the veteran applied to the taxing authority before the note date. Texas is on that list, which is a real advantage. It is still one investor’s policy, not a rule every lender follows, so confirm it on your file rather than assuming it.

Practically, ask your loan officer two questions before you write an offer: will you use a reduced tax figure to qualify me, and will you waive the tax escrow. Different lenders give different answers on the same file, and that is normal, not a mistake.

What we can do instead: waive the escrow

If the exemption cannot be counted yet, the fallback is to not escrow the taxes at all, so your monthly housing expense is not carrying twelve months of a tax bill that is about to shrink. VA does not require escrows, so this is a lender and investor decision, and many will allow it on a strong file. There are lenders that will waive the tax escrow on a VA loan even when the property taxes have not been waived yet, so this is a real option and not a rare favor. Some will waive it with no restrictions at all, others want the eligibility proof and the correct paperwork in the file first. Waiving escrow does not require the taxing authority to approve anything, which is why it is usually the easier ask of the two. Understand the tradeoff: with no escrow account, you pay the taxing authority directly and you are on your own for those tax bills until the exemption is actually approved, and approval can take a while. Budget for it and pay the bill on time; a delinquent tax bill on a home you just bought is an expensive way to save a few dollars of monthly payment.

One more VA rule to know, because it runs the other way. On estimating taxes, Chapter 4 says “If taxes are expected to increase, use the increased amount.” There is no matching VA instruction that lets an underwriter write down your taxes, which is why the reduction is always a lender option and never a VA entitlement. The Chapter 4 text is here if you want to read it.

Plan for the gap between closing and approval

These applications take a while to process, and the taxing authority’s calendar does not wait for your loan. A tax bill can come due between your closing date and the day your exemption is approved, and you are the owner, so that bill is yours. That can include taxes attributable to the period the prior owner held the home. One lender’s VA guide makes it explicit and requires a signed letter of explanation from the veteran borrower stating they are solely responsible for the property taxes owed for the prior owner. Keep the money set aside and do not assume the first bill will be reduced, especially if you waived escrow and Texas is billing you directly.

How to apply in Texas, step by step

1. For the 11.131 total exemption: file Form 50-114, the Residence Homestead Exemption Application, available as a PDF download from the Texas Comptroller.
2. For the 11.22 partial exemption: file Form 50-135, Application for Disabled Veteran’s or Survivor’s Exemptions, also a PDF download from the Texas Comptroller.
3. Attach your VA rating decision or award letter showing the 100 percent rating or IU determination. A driver’s license or state ID is not acceptable proof of disability rating for this exemption, even though it is required for some other exemptions.
4. Submit to your county appraisal district, not the Comptroller’s office. The Comptroller’s statewide directory of county appraisal districts has contact information for every county in Texas.
5. Deadline: April 30 of the tax year. The chief appraiser may extend it for good cause. Late filing is unusually generous in Texas: the 11.131 and 11.22 exemptions can be filed up to five years after the delinquency date for taxes on the property, and a surviving spouse generally has two years for some of these exemptions. Confirm your specific deadline with your appraisal district, since it varies by exemption and by situation.

On the late-filing window, the state’s own two sources word it differently. The Comptroller’s 100 percent disabled veteran FAQ says five years after the delinquency date for the taxes on the property. The Comptroller’s 2026 exemptions publication says a late application for the 100 percent disabled veteran exemption or the donated homestead exemption may be filed up to five years after the filing deadline, with two years for the surviving spouse of a 100 percent disabled veteran, the surviving spouse on a donated homestead, or the surviving spouse of a service member killed in the line of duty (Tax Code 11.439) [Texas Comptroller, 2026-09-11]. Those two starting points are months apart. If you are anywhere near the edge of the window, do not guess it off a website, mine included. Call your appraisal district and ask them to date it for you.

What happens after you file, and how long it takes

The statute puts a clock on the appraisal district, which matters if you are trying to line this up with a closing. The chief appraiser has to act on your application no later than the 90th day after you apply. If they need more information, they have to send you written notice no later than 30 days after receiving your application saying exactly what they need, and you then have 30 days to produce it or the application gets denied, with a possible 15-day extension for good cause. If they modify or deny it, they have to tell you in writing within five days, fully explain every reason, and include how to protest it to the appraisal review board [Texas Comptroller, publication 96-1740, January 2026].

Plan on the full 90 days, not the best case. That is the whole reason the escrow conversation below matters: a purchase closes faster than an exemption gets approved.

Download the Comptroller’s own exemption guide

This is the source I used for the homestead amounts, the 11.136 surviving spouse exemption, the heir property documents and the 90-day timeline above. It is the Texas Comptroller’s January 2026 publication 96-1740, Texas Property Tax Exemptions, 27 pages covering every Tax Code exemption, including the appendix charts showing which exemptions need an annual application and which are one time. Hand it to your appraisal district if anyone tells you a provision does not exist.

• Texas Property Tax Exemptions, Comptroller publication 96-1740, January 2026 (PDF download)
• The same publication on the Comptroller’s own site (PDF download), if you want it straight from the agency

You generally do not have to refile every year once approved, but tell your appraisal district right away if you sell, move, or your rating changes.

Can you get a refund of prior year taxes?

Yes, further back than most states allow. The 11.131 total exemption and the 11.22 partial exemption can both be filed up to five years after the delinquency date for taxes on the property. The 11.132 charitable-donation exemption follows the same five-year window. A surviving spouse filing under some of these provisions has a shorter, two-year window.

That means a veteran who was rated 100 percent years ago and never filed can, in many cases, go back and claim multiple prior tax years at once, not just the current one. Bring your VA rating decision showing when the 100 percent rating or IU determination took effect, since that date controls which years you can claim.

Other Texas programs for disabled veterans

The property tax exemptions are the biggest homeowner-facing benefit, but Texas runs several other veteran programs worth knowing about.

• No state income tax (state). Texas has no state individual income tax at all, so there is nothing to deduct or exempt on VA disability compensation or military retirement pay. It also means the state leans harder on property tax than most, which is exactly why these exemptions matter more here than in a state like Ohio.
• Texas Veterans Land Board home and land loans (state). The General Land Office’s Veterans Land Board offers below-market financing for land purchases and home improvement loans to eligible Texas veterans, separate from and stackable with a VA-guaranteed mortgage on the home itself. glo.texas.gov/veterans.
• Hazlewood Act tuition exemption (state). Eligible Texas veterans, and in some cases their spouses and dependent children, can attend Texas public colleges and universities without paying tuition and most fees for up to 150 credit hours. Administered by the Texas Veterans Commission. tvc.texas.gov, Hazlewood Act.
• Texas Veterans Commission benefits counseling (state). Free help filing VA disability claims, appeals, and general benefits navigation, at no cost, through TVC’s statewide network of claims counselors. tvc.texas.gov/benefits.
• Sales tax exemption for surviving spouses of 100 percent disabled veterans on homestead donations (state). The narrower 11.132 exemption above covers property tax on a charity-donated home; it is separate from any sales tax question and applies only to that specific situation.

Texas disabled veteran property tax FAQs

How much is the disabled veteran property tax exemption in Texas?

It depends which of three exemptions you qualify for. Under Tax Code 11.131, a veteran with a 100 percent disability rating, or compensated at the 100 percent rate for individual unemployability, gets a total exemption on the appraised value of their residence homestead. Under Tax Code 11.22, veterans rated 10 to 90 percent get a fixed dollar exemption of $5,000 to $12,000 depending on the rating tier, and that one can apply to any one property, not only a homestead.

Is $12,000 the most a Texas disabled veteran can get?

No. $12,000 is the top tier of the Tax Code 11.22 partial exemption. If you are rated 100 percent, or paid at the 100 percent rate for individual unemployability, you qualify under Tax Code 11.131 instead, which exempts the entire appraised value of your homestead, not a capped dollar amount.

Who sets my disability rating for the Texas exemption?

For the 11.131 total exemption, it is the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs rating or IU determination. For the older 11.22 partial exemption, the Comptroller’s own FAQ still says the rating can come from the VA or from the branch of service in which you served. Bring your VA rating decision or award letter either way. That is what appraisal districts actually ask for.

What is the deadline to apply in Texas, and can I file late?

The regular deadline is April 30 of the tax year. Texas is unusually forgiving on late filing: you can apply for the 11.131 or 11.22 exemption up to five years after the delinquency date on the property, and a surviving spouse has two years for some exemptions. Confirm your exact window with your county appraisal district.

Does the exemption transfer to a surviving spouse in Texas?

Yes. An unremarried surviving spouse of a veteran who qualified, or would have qualified, for the 11.131 total exemption keeps the exemption on that homestead, and can carry the same dollar amount to a new homestead, though the new home is not guaranteed a full exemption. Section 11.22 has its own, separate surviving-spouse and surviving-child rules.

Does the Texas homestead exemption stack with the disabled veteran exemption?

Yes. They are separate exemptions and you can hold both on the same house. School districts must exempt $140,000 of a residence homestead’s value, with another $60,000 if you are 65 or older or meet the state’s disabled test, and that is on top of the 11.22 or 11.131 veteran exemption. Both are claimed on Form 50-114 except the 11.22 partial exemption, which uses Form 50-135. One caution on the extra $60,000: for that one, disabled means the Social Security disability definition, not your VA rating.

My spouse died from a PACT Act condition. Do I qualify for a Texas exemption?

Possibly, even if the rating was low. Tax Code 11.136 gives the unremarried surviving spouse of a veteran who died as a result of a qualifying condition or disease a total exemption on their residence homestead, regardless of the veteran’s disability rating at the time of death. The qualifying conditions are the ones under the PACT Act (Pub. L. No. 117-168) or a regulation adopted under it that establishes a presumption of service connection. File Form 50-114 with your county appraisal district.

Can I use the exemption before I close on a Texas home?

Ownership and qualifying status on January 1 control the exemption for that tax year, so a home you buy partway through the year will not carry a full year’s exemption at closing. Texas law does let the exemption apply for the remainder of the year once you qualify a new homestead, which is more generous than most states, but a lender still decides whether to credit the lower tax bill before the county has actually approved it. Ask your loan officer before you write the offer.

Where to go next

• Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exemption Guide, every state’s exemption, form and deadline in one directory
• The complete guide to VA home loans
• Funding Fee Waivers and Refunds Guide, the fee is waived outright at a 10 percent rating or higher, and can be refunded if you already paid it
• Property tax discounts for veterans on VA disability, the national overview
• Bad credit VA loans in Texas
• VA manual underwriting in Texas
• Texas Comptroller, statewide directory of county appraisal districts
• Texas Property Tax Exemptions, Comptroller publication 96-1740, January 2026 (PDF download), the state’s own 27-page guide to every property tax exemption
• Texas Tax Code, Chapter 11 (Exemptions), sections 11.131, 11.132 and 11.22