Kentucky’s senior property tax exemption lets homeowners who are 65 or older subtract $49,100 from the assessed value of their primary residence before property taxes are calculated for the 2025 and 2026 tax years. The break is written into Section 170 of the Kentucky Constitution and carried out through KRS 132.810, and because it applies across every local taxing jurisdiction, it lowers the county, city, school, and special district portions of your bill at the same time.1Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Constitution Section 170 – Property Exempt From Taxation
Who Qualifies
You qualify on age if you turn 65 at any point during the calendar year you’re applying for. You don’t have to wait until your birthday to apply, only to be turning 65 that year.2Justia Law. Kentucky Revised Statutes 132.810 – Homestead Exemption Application Qualification
Two other conditions apply to every applicant:
- You must hold title to the property. The constitution reads this broadly: title can be legal or equitable, and it can be held jointly, in common, by the entireties, or as a condominium.1Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Constitution Section 170 – Property Exempt From Taxation
- The home must be your permanent primary residence. A vacation house or a rental you own doesn’t count.
Only one exemption is allowed per residential unit, no matter how many qualifying people live there. If you and your spouse are both over 65 and co-own the home, you get one exemption, not two. Being both 65 and totally disabled doesn’t stack either.2Justia Law. Kentucky Revised Statutes 132.810 – Homestead Exemption Application Qualification
Kentucky assesses all property as of January 1 each year, so your ownership and occupancy on that date drive your eligibility for that tax cycle. If you move out later in the year, the exemption stays on the bill for that year but won’t follow you unless you reapply on the new home.
Kentucky offers a separate path for homeowners under 65 who are classified as totally disabled by a federal agency or a retirement system. That program has its own annual-renewal rules and is not covered here.
How Much It Saves You
For the 2025 and 2026 assessment years, the exemption is $49,100, and the Department of Revenue adjusts it every two years for cost-of-living changes.3Kentucky Department of Revenue. Homestead Exemption
The actual dollar savings depend on your local tax rate. Take a home assessed at $200,000 in an area with a combined rate of $1.20 per $100 of assessed value. Without the exemption, the bill would run $2,400. Subtract $49,100 from the assessed value first, and tax is calculated on $150,900, bringing the bill to about $1,811. That’s roughly $589 back in your pocket, and the cut applies to every jurisdiction on the bill.
If your home’s assessed value is $49,100 or less, the exemption zeroes out the property tax entirely. Assessments don’t go negative.
How to Apply
File Form 62A350, the Application for Exemption Under the Homestead/Disability Amendment, with the Property Valuation Administrator (PVA) in the county where the home sits. You can get the form at your county PVA’s office or from the Kentucky Department of Revenue website. There’s no filing fee.4Kentucky Department of Revenue. Application for Exemption Under the Homestead/Disability Amendment
The form asks for your full legal name, date of birth, and the property’s physical address. You’ll also need to prove your age. The Department of Revenue treats these as primary documentation:
- Birth certificate or birth registration
- Kentucky driver’s license or state-issued photo ID
- U.S. passport
Baptismal or confirmation records, a Medicare card issued by Social Security, a Medical Assistance Card with an A or J prefix, and school records are also accepted.4Kentucky Department of Revenue. Application for Exemption Under the Homestead/Disability Amendment
Deadline and Where to Send It
The application is due by December 31 of the year you want the exemption to take effect.4Kentucky Department of Revenue. Application for Exemption Under the Homestead/Disability Amendment Most PVA offices accept the form by mail or in person during business hours. Filing early in the year is a good habit. It gives the PVA time to process everything before your tax bill is calculated, and if there’s a discrepancy in your paperwork, you’ll have a way to sort it out. Once approved, you’ll typically get a revised assessment notice showing the lower taxable amount.
Every county has its own PVA. The Kentucky Department of Revenue website has a “Find My PVA” directory that will send you to the right office.5Kentucky Department of Revenue. Homestead Exemption
After You’re Approved
For the age-based exemption, there is no annual reapplication. Once the PVA approves you at 65, the exemption keeps rolling forward on your tax bills as long as you still own and live in the home.5Kentucky Department of Revenue. Homestead Exemption
You are expected to tell the PVA when your situation changes. The common triggers: selling the home, moving to a different primary residence, or renting the property out. The PVA can also ask you to reverify occupancy at any time.
Under KRS 132.990, willfully failing to give the PVA or the Department of Revenue required property information carries a fine of up to $500.6Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statutes 132.990 – Penalties On top of the fine, you’d owe back taxes on the exemption amount for any years you weren’t eligible, potentially with interest. PVAs pay particular attention to cases where an owner moved but never canceled the exemption on the old address.
If Your Home Is Held in a Trust
Title held through a trust is where estate planning and the exemption can collide, and the rule turns on whether the trust is revocable or irrevocable.
A revocable trust preserves the exemption. If you’ve moved the home into a revocable trust, remain a trustee, and keep the right to live there as your permanent residence, the exemption continues. Section 170 recognizes equitable title, and a beneficial interest in a revocable trust counts.7Kentucky Department of Revenue. Homestead Exemption Manual
An irrevocable trust usually kills it. Once you’ve permanently given up ownership rights, the exemption is generally denied. One narrow exception: if the trust document expressly grants you exclusive, rent-free use of the home for life and requires you to keep paying all the property’s expenses, the PVA may still approve it.7Kentucky Department of Revenue. Homestead Exemption Manual If an irrevocable trust is on the table, have the PVA look at the trust language before you sign the transfer. Losing the exemption on a home you still live in is an expensive mistake to fix after the fact.