New York Program Overview

You are entitled to the refundable Real Property Tax Credit for Homeowners and Renters credit if:

• Your household gross income is $18,000 or less.
• You occupied the same New York residence for six months or more.
• You were a New York State resident for the entire tax year.
• You could not be claimed as a dependent on another taxpayer’s federal income tax return.
• Your residence was not completely exempt from real property taxes.
• The current market value of all real property you owned, such as houses, garages, and land, was $85,000 or less, and you meet all the conditions listed under either Homeowners or Renters below:

Homeowners

• You or your spouse paid real property taxes
• Any rent you received for nonresidential use of your residence was 20% or less of the total rent you received

Renters

• The average monthly rent you and other members of your household paid was $450 or less, not counting charges for heat, gas, electricity, furnishings, or board

File your 2025 claim after January 1, 2026, but not later than April 16, 2029.

You can receive a Real Property Tax Credit refund for past years if you complete and file for the year or years that you were eligible before these dates:

New York State Personal Income Tax Return (IT-201)

• Complete Form IT-214, Claim for Real Property Tax Credit for Homeowners and Renters, and submit it with your New York State personal income tax return, Form IT-201. If you do not have to file a New York return but qualify for this credit, complete and file Form IT-214 to claim a refund of the credit.
• Homeowners need to know the amount of real property taxes paid during 2025 (see instructions on Form IT-214-I for guidance).
• If you’re a renter, you need to know the total amount of rent you or your spouse (if married filing jointly) paid during 2025. Do not include any subsidized part of your rental charge.

You are entitled to the refundable Real Property Tax Credit for Homeowners and Renters credit if:

• Your household gross income is $18,000 or less.
• You occupied the same New York residence for six months or more.
• You were a New York State resident for the entire tax year.
• You could not be claimed as a dependent on another taxpayer’s federal income tax return.
• Your residence was not completely exempt from real property taxes.
• The current market value of all real property you owned, such as houses, garages, and land, was $85,000 or less, and you meet all the conditions listed under either Homeowners or Renters below:

Homeowners

• You or your spouse paid real property taxes
• Any rent you received for nonresidential use of your residence was 20% or less of the total rent you received

Renters

• The average monthly rent you and other members of your household paid was $450 or less, not counting charges for heat, gas, electricity, furnishings, or board

File your 2025 claim after January 1, 2026, but not later than April 16, 2029.

You can receive a Real Property Tax Credit refund for past years if you complete and file for the year or years that you were eligible before these dates:

New York State Personal Income Tax Return (IT-201)

• Complete Form IT-214, Claim for Real Property Tax Credit for Homeowners and Renters, and submit it with your New York State personal income tax return, Form IT-201. If you do not have to file a New York return but qualify for this credit, complete and file Form IT-214 to claim a refund of the credit.
• Homeowners need to know the amount of real property taxes paid during 2025 (see instructions on Form IT-214-I for guidance).
• If you’re a renter, you need to know the total amount of rent you or your spouse (if married filing jointly) paid during 2025. Do not include any subsidized part of your rental charge.

Basic STAR credit

• You must own your home and it must be your primary residence.
• Your combined household income (owners and owners’ spouses who live at the property) must be $500,000 or less.

Enhanced STAR credit

• You (or one owner if jointly owned) must be age 65 or older by December 31 of the year the benefit begins.
• Your combined household income (all owners and any owner’s spouse who lives at the property) must be at or below the Enhanced STAR income limit for the applicable benefit year (for example, $110,750 for the 2026–2027 benefit year).

Primary residence requirement for both Basic and Enhanced:

The property must be your primary residence — the home you live in most of the time.

You should register for the STAR Credit as soon as your home becomes your primary residence. Once you are registered, you do not need to register again unless there has been a change in the ownership of the property.

Once you register for the STAR Credit, the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance will determine each year whether you qualify for Basic or Enhanced STAR and issue the appropriate credit

Before registering for the STAR credit, have the following information readily available:

• names and Social Security numbers for all owners of the property and their spouses
• name of the school district where your primary residence is located
• approximate date the owners purchased the property
• names of the sellers (not required, but may help ensure you receive your credit before school taxes are due)
• most recent school tax bill, if the current owners received one (view examples)
• address of any residential property owned in another state
• legal name of the trust, if applicable
• 2024 federal or state income tax returns for all owners

If you were not required to file a 2024 income tax return, you will need the following additional information for all property owners:

• total wages, salaries, and tips
• taxable interest income and dividends
• unemployment compensation
• total pensions and annuities
• Social Security benefits
• other income

To be eligible:

• You must be 65 or older by December 31 of the following year. If you co-own your property with a spouse or sibling, only one of you needs to be 65 or older. For other co-ownerships, such as a parent and children, all owners must be 65 or older
• The property must be your primary residence.
• The total combined income of all owners and their spouses must be $58,399 or less for the last calendar year.
• If an owner, or spouse of an owner, is not required to file a federal income tax return, complete and attach Form RP-467-Wkst.

Income is defined as the federal adjusted gross income (FAGI) as reported on the applicant’s federal form 1040 tax return(s) and subject to the following revisions:

• Social Security benefits not included in the applicant’s FAGI are considered income, except where a locality has opted to exclude them from income.
• Distributions from an individual retirement account or individual retirement annuity included in the applicant’s FAGI are not considered income, except where a locality has opted to include them in income.
• Medical and prescription drug expenses of an owner that were actually paid for and not reimbursed or paid by insurance may be deducted from income where a locality has opted to allow them to be deducted.
• If an owner is an inpatient in a residential health care facility, the amount paid for care at the facility by that owner (or by that owner’s spouse or co-owner) may be deducted from income.
• Any tax-exempt interest or dividends that were not included in the applicant’s FAGI are considered income.
• The net amount of loss claimed on federal Schedule C, D, E, F, or any other separate category of loss cannot exceed $3,000, and the total amount of all losses claimed cannot exceed $15,000.
• Note: As there are various adjustments to income regarding eligibility for this exemption, some of which are subject to local option by your taxing jurisdictions (municipality, school district, and county), you will not be computing your income on Forms RP-467 or RP-467-Rnw. The assessor will determine your income after applying the adjustments available in your taxing jurisdictions.
• In addition, there are three sliding-scale options that municipalities may adopt to provide a benefit to seniors with incomes greater than the local maximum. Under these options, qualifying seniors may receive the exemption if their income is: $55,700 for a 20% exemption, $57,500 for a 10% exemption, or $58,400 for a 5% exemption. Check with your local assessor for the income limits in your community.

In most communities, the deadline for submitting exemption applications is March 1. However, the dates vary in some cities and counties. Please confirm the date with your assessor.

Some municipalities permit late filing in certain hardship situations or for exemption renewals. Contact your assessor to see if your municipality offers these provisions.

When qualifying seniors buy property after the deadline, then the senior can apply up to 30 days after the purchase. The assessor then has 30 days to decide whether the senior would have qualified for the exemption if the senior owned the property as of the deadline.

Proof of Income:

• If any owner, or the spouse of any owner, filed a federal income tax return for the applicable income tax calendar year, a copy of the return must be submitted with the application.
• Applicants who were not required to file a federal income tax return for the applicable income tax year must submit Form RP-467-Wkst with their application, including any documentation as instructed by Form RP-467-Wkst.
• Your assessor may request additional proof of income or deductions.

Proof of age:

• Accepted documents include but are not limited to copies of driver’s license, birth certificate, voter’s registration record, passport.

Proof of Ownership:

• Such proof might consist of a copy of the deed by which title was acquired by the applicant or another document indicating that title is vested in the applicant.