STAR Tax Relief Program
New York State School Tax Relief (STAR) Program
ABOUT THE STAR PROGRAM:
You may be eligible for school property tax savings. If you own property and it is your primary residence, you are probably eligible for a STAR school property tax exemption. To receive your exemption all you have to do is complete an application which you may obtain from your local assessor’s office or download from www.tax.ny.gov. Return the completed form to your local assessor by March 1st. The assessor may require proof of residency and ownership.
2 TYPES OF STAR EXEMPTION:
1) The Basic STAR exemption is available for owner-occupied, primary residences for owners who are 64 years old or younger. Basic STAR works by exempting the first $30,000 of the full market value of a home from school taxes. To be eligible for the Basic STAR, the maximum adjustable gross income limit is $500,000.
You may need to re-apply for the basic STAR exemption. All taxpayers eligible for the Basic STAR exemption were required to complete a registration with the NYS Tax Department to continue to receive STAR exemptions in 2014 and subsequent years. If you did not complete this registration, then you must complete the application referred to above and return it to your local assessor by March 1st. You can look on your 2014 tax bill to verify if you are currently receiving the Basic STAR exemption or if you need to re-apply.
OR
2) The Enhanced (Senior) STAR exemption is available for the primary residences of senior citizens (age 65 and older) with yearly household incomes not exceeding the statewide standard. For qualifying senior citizens, the Enhanced STAR program works by exempting a portion of the full market value of their home from property taxes ($64,200 for the 2014-2015 school year). For property owned by a husband and wife, or by siblings, only one of them must be at least 65 years of age as of December 31st of the year in which the exemption will begin to qualify for the Enhanced exemption. Their combined annual income, however, must not exceed the STAR income standard (currently $83,300).
Seniors must re-apply annually or participate in the Income Verification Program. The assessor’s office suggests that senior citizens apply for, or renew, your application when you receive your school tax bill each year. That will ensure that you will continue to receive your Enhanced STAR exemption for the following year.