Texas Homestead Exemption: Deadlines, Forms, and What It Saves in 2026
Published . Updated . Amounts and deadlines below were checked that day on the Texas Comptroller site and the Texas Tax Code.
A Texas residence homestead exemption takes a slice of your home’s appraised value off the tax roll for the taxing units that grant it. It does not set your tax rate, and it is not the same paperwork as a value protest. The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts says there is no state property tax: each local taxing unit assesses and collects its own tax, and an exemption exists only where the Texas Constitution allows it.
This page is not legal or tax advice. The chief appraiser decides whether your home qualifies. Use the official pages in Sources before you file.
The school amount is $140,000
The Comptroller’s property-tax exemptions page says Tax Code Section 11.13(b) requires school districts to provide a $140,000 exemption on a residence homestead. The statute text on statutes.capitol.texas.gov matches that figure: an adult is entitled to an exemption from school-district taxation of $140,000 of the appraised value of the adult’s residence homestead. The same subsection says only $5,000 of that exemption applies to an entity still operating under certain former Education Code chapters. A typical independent school district, including Houston ISD, is taxed under the $140,000 figure the Comptroller describes.
The Comptroller’s own illustration is a $300,000 home. With the $140,000 school exemption, school taxes are figured as if the home were worth $160,000. City, county, and special-district taxes are separate. A local option, if the taxing unit adopted one, is a percentage of appraised value, not another copy of the $140,000.
Tax Code Section 11.13(n) lets any taxing unit adopt a local-option residence homestead exemption of up to 20 percent of appraised value. If that percentage would be less than $5,000 on a particular home, the exemption is $5,000. The Comptroller page states the same cap and the same $5,000 floor. Section 11.13(a) separately entitles a family or single adult to a $3,000 exemption from the county taxes authorized by Texas Constitution Article VIII, Section 1-a, which are the farm-to-market and flood-control taxes. That $3,000 is not the general county operating tax, and it is not added again in the Houston dollar example below.
Who can claim it
The Comptroller says the home must be a residence homestead, the owner must have an ownership interest, and the owner must use it as their principal residence. The application must say the owner does not claim a homestead on another residence in Texas or outside Texas. Tax Code Section 11.43(j) requires that owner list, that statement, and a copy of the driver’s license or state identification certificate, with the exceptions in that subsection.
Section 11.43(n) says the chief appraiser may not allow the exemption, when a license or ID is required, unless the address on the card matches the property. Subsection (p) excepts certain active-duty military members and certain confidential driver’s licenses. HCAD’s FAQ states the same Harris County rule and says a temporary paper license can be sent after an address change. An heir who is not on a recorded deed must also give the district an ownership affidavit, the prior owner’s death certificate, the latest utility bill, and any court-record citation. Other heirs who live in the home must authorize the application by affidavit. That is Section 11.43(o) and the Comptroller’s heir-property instructions.
Scout’s checklist
- File with the appraisal district, not the tax office that sends the bill.
- Match the house address on your Texas driver’s license or state ID.
- Keep this application separate from a protest of the appraised value.
What it saves on a Houston ISD home
School tax is taxable value times the rate, divided by 100. Houston ISD’s tax page says the board adopted a 2026 rate of $0.8421 per $100 on October 8, 2026 ($0.6754 maintenance and operations and $0.1667 debt service). The same page states a homestead exemption of the state $140,000 plus 20 percent of appraised value. Checked October 21, 2026. On a $350,000 home, school tax with no exemption is $2,947.35. The state $140,000 saves $1,178.94 and does not depend on value once the appraisal is at least $140,000. The 20 percent is $70,000 on this home, above the $5,000 floor in Tax Code Section 11.13(n), and it saves another $589.47. School taxable value is $140,000 and school tax is $1,178.94. The state amount does not come off county, city, or special-district lines. The 20 percent does, on each unit that adopted it.
The HCAD jurisdiction page for account 1045310000022 shows 20 percent for Harris County, the Flood Control District, the Hospital District, the Port of Houston Authority, the Department of Education, and the City of Houston. Houston ISD’s own 20 percent is on the district tax page, and HCAD jurisdiction list code 001 shows the same percent. Twenty percent of $350,000 is $70,000. The table is a tax year 2026 estimate using the same rule as the calculator: the adopted 2026 rate when this dataset has one, otherwise the 2025 adopted rate. The City of Houston and the Harris County Department of Education had no adopted 2026 rate in the dataset on October 21, 2026. Houston City College is left off.
A $350,000 Houston home inside Houston ISD, with those exemptions and with Houston City College left off:
| Taxing unit | Rate year | Rate per $100 | Tax, no exemption | Tax with homestead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harris County | 2026 | 0.4175 | $1,461.25 | $1,169.00 |
| Harris County Flood Control | 2026 | 0.05266 | $184.31 | $147.45 |
| Harris Health | 2026 | 0.19528 | $683.48 | $546.78 |
| Port of Houston | 2026 | 0.00603 | $21.11 | $16.88 |
| Harris County Dept. of Education | 2025 | 0.0048 | $16.80 | $13.44 |
| Houston ISD | 2026 | 0.8421 | $2,947.35 | $1,178.94 |
| City of Houston | 2025 | 0.51919 | $1,817.17 | $1,453.73 |
| Total | $7,131.47 | $4,526.22 |
The bill falls by $2,605.25. Of that, $1,768.41 is the Houston ISD exemption: $1,178.94 from the state $140,000 and $589.47 from the 20 percent. The other $836.84 is the 20 percent exemption on the six non-school units. Katy ISD’s 2026 adopted rate on the Harris County Tax Office list is $1.1171 per $100, the same figure as 2025. This dataset does not give Katy ISD a local percentage homestead, so the state $140,000 saves $1,563.94 there. Open the property tax calculator, choose Harris County and Houston, select Houston ISD, leave Houston City College off unless it is on your bill, and compare the result with “General homestead” checked and unchecked.
Forms and the deadline
Tax Code Section 11.43(a) says that, with a short list of exceptions that do not include the homestead, you must apply. The application goes to the chief appraiser of each appraisal district where the property is taxable. The Comptroller’s form is Form 50-114, Residence Homestead Exemption Application. Heir-property affidavits are on Form 50-114-A. HCAD’s FAQ still calls the application “form 11.13.” That is the same residence homestead application; the Comptroller’s current form number is 50-114.
Section 11.43(d) says the completed application is due before May 1 when eligibility is based on your qualifications on January 1. The Comptroller’s exemptions page uses that same general deadline: before May 1. For good cause, the chief appraiser may extend the deadline once, by written order, for not more than 60 days.
If you buy after January 1, you do not wait for the next January. The Comptroller says an owner who acquires the property after January 1 may receive the general residence homestead exemption for the applicable portion of that tax year as soon as they qualify, if the previous owner did not receive the same exemption for that year. Section 11.43(d) says a person who acquires property after January 1 that qualifies under Section 11.42(d) or (f) must apply before the first anniversary of the acquisition date.
HCAD says you can mail the application, take it to the third-floor counter at 13013 Northwest Freeway, Houston, or submit it electronically. The information center number on HCAD’s FAQ is (713) 957-7800, and the hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.
After it is allowed, and if you are late
Section 11.43(c) says an exemption under Section 11.13, once allowed, need not be claimed in later years. It continues until the property changes ownership or your qualification changes. The chief appraiser may require a new application only by following subsection (c-1): a reason to believe you no longer qualify, an attempt to check, and a written notice that states the reason.
If the deadline has already passed, Section 11.431(a) still requires the chief appraiser to accept the application and approve or deny it when it is filed not later than two years after the delinquency date for the taxes on that homestead. Section 31.02(a) says that, except as provided in subsection (b) and in Sections 31.03 and 31.04, taxes are due when you receive the bill and are delinquent if not paid before February 1 of the year after the year they are imposed. If a late homestead application is approved after the appraisal review board has approved the appraisal records, Section 11.431(b) tells the collector to deduct the exempt amount from a bill that is still unpaid, or to refund it if you already paid. You do not have to file a separate refund application to get that refund.
A homestead exemption does not freeze the school tax. The freeze, which the statute calls a limitation on school-tax increases, is a different rule for homeowners who are 65 or older or disabled. That limitation is Tax Code Section 11.26, covered in the over-65 school tax ceiling article. A shorter map of the other exemptions, including disabled-veteran amounts, is on the Texas exemptions overview. If the value itself looks high, the protest path is separate: see how to protest in Harris County.
Frequently asked questions
When is the Texas homestead exemption application due?
Tax Code Section 11.43(d) says a person who must claim an exemption has to file a completed application before May 1. The Comptroller’s exemptions page states the same general deadline. If you buy the home after January 1, Section 11.43(d) gives a different date for property covered by Section 11.42(d) or (f): apply before the first anniversary of the day you acquired it.
Does the $140,000 exemption come off the whole tax bill?
No. Tax Code Section 11.13(b) is an exemption from school-district taxation. County, city, and special-district taxes change only if that taxing unit has adopted its own homestead exemption. On the Houston example below, Houston ISD school tax falls by $1,768.41. That is the state $140,000 plus Houston ISD’s 20 percent local homestead exemption, at the district’s 2026 adopted rate of $0.8421 per $100.
Do I reapply every year?
Tax Code Section 11.43(c) says a residence homestead exemption, once allowed, does not have to be claimed again each year. It stays until ownership changes or you no longer qualify, unless the chief appraiser follows the statute’s steps and asks for a new application. Section 11.43(g) says you must tell the appraisal office in writing before May 1 after your right to the exemption ends.
What if I missed the deadline?
Tax Code Section 11.431(a) says the chief appraiser must accept and approve or deny a residence homestead application filed after the deadline if it arrives not later than two years after the delinquency date for the taxes on that homestead. Tax Code Section 31.02(a) says taxes are delinquent if not paid before February 1 of the following year, with the exceptions listed in that section.
Use the calculator
The estimator below uses the same exemptions as the table. Set the tax year to 2026. The City of Houston and the Harris County Department of Education fall back to their 2025 adopted rates, and the calculator says so. Leave Houston City College off unless it is on your bill. Turn “General homestead” on and off and read the homestead-savings line. Rates and exemption sources are listed on the data sources page.
Texas Property Tax Estimator
All 254 counties. Each taxing unit is calculated on its own.
Loading taxing units for Harris County.
Lowers the value before exemptions. It is not a protest result.
Source: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Tax Rates and Levies, tax year 2025, latest Comptroller file, posted January 2026. Local exemptions are not included unless you enter them, last checked 2026-10-07. All data sources
Sources
The Houston ISD rate and local homestead exemption were checked October 21, 2026. The other adopted rates were checked October 7, 2026, on the Harris County Tax Office list. Statutes do not carry a “last updated” stamp. The dollar example uses the same rounding as the calculator on this site.
- Texas Comptroller, Property Tax Exemptions — $140,000 school exemption, 20 percent local option, $5,000 floor, $3,000 farm-to-market or flood-control exemption, qualification rules, and Form 50-114.
- Texas Tax Code Chapter 11 — Sections 11.13 and 11.43, including the before-May-1 deadline and the one-time application rule.
- Tax Code Section 11.431 — late homestead applications, up to two years after the delinquency date.
- Tax Code Section 31.02 — usual delinquency date, before February 1 of the following year.
- Comptroller Form 50-114 and Form 50-114-A.
- Harris County Tax Office, Jurisdiction Tax Rates — 2026 adopted rates for Harris County (0.4175), flood control (0.05266), Harris Health (0.19528), and the Port of Houston (0.00603), and the 2025 rates used where no 2026 rate was posted: the Department of Education (0.0048) and the City of Houston (0.51919). Katy ISD 2026 rate 1.1171. Checked October 7, 2026.
- Houston ISD, Tax Information — 2026 adopted rate of $0.8421 per $100, adopted October 8, 2026, and the homestead exemption of $140,000 plus 20 percent of appraised value. Checked October 21, 2026.
- HCAD jurisdiction page, account 1045310000022 — 20 percent homestead column for the Harris units in the example. Read October 10, 2026. Confirm the percent on your own account.
- HCAD frequently asked questions — how to qualify, what to attach, and where to file in Harris County.