Texas Veteran
Property Tax
Exemption
Texas offers one of the strongest veteran property tax benefits in the country. If you have a service-connected VA disability rating of 10% or more, you qualify for a reduction. If the VA pays you 100% disability compensation with a 100% rating or individual unemployability (IU), Texas removes the property taxes on your home entirely. No partial reduction. Zero dollars. Every year.
A standard homestead exemption can start partway through the year only if the seller did not have one that year. The 100% disabled veteran exemption takes effect the day you occupy the home as your primary residence, whatever the seller had. Property taxes are prorated for the year — you only owe taxes for the portion of the year before you qualified. File as soon as you move in. If you miss the April 30 deadline, Texas lets a disabled veteran file up to five years after that year's taxes become delinquent and refunds tax paid on the exempt amount (Tax Code §11.439).
This guide was written by Christopher Beal — U.S. Army veteran with a 100% permanent and total (P&T) VA disability rating, MRP-certified Military Relocation Professional, and the founder and Owner of Veteran Real Estate San Antonio: The Beal Group, brokered by eXp Realty. Ranked #13 (2024), #14 (2025) and #20 (2026) among the San Antonio Business Journal's Top 25 Individual Agents. 7× eXp ICON Agent · 3× Platinum Top 50. He specializes in veteran and military home buying in San Antonio and the Hill Country.
Do 100% Disabled Veterans Pay Property Taxes in Texas?
No. Veterans who receive 100% VA disability compensation with a 100% rating or individual unemployability (IU) are fully exempt from property taxes on their residence homestead in Texas under Texas Tax Code Section 11.131; a permanent and total (P&T) designation is not required. The exemption eliminates all property taxes — county, city, school district, and special districts — on the full appraised value of the home with no cap on home price. Veterans rated 10% or higher can take a partial reduction of $5,000 to $12,000 on one property under §11.22. The full exemption applies to your homestead only and moves with you to a new homestead when you file a new application. A surviving spouse who has not remarried keeps it on the same home; on a later home it is limited to the dollar amount of the last exemption. Applications are filed with the Bexar Appraisal District (bcad.org) in San Antonio. The 100% disabled veteran exemption is effective the day you move in, even if the seller had a homestead exemption that year — taxes are prorated for the year — and a veteran who misses the April 30 deadline can still file up to five years late. Contact Christopher Beal — a 100% P&T veteran who has personally used this benefit — at (210) 882-8583.
Every Disability Rating Tier — What You Save
Under §11.22, the amount is taken off the assessed value of one property you choose. You get the $12,000 amount at any rating of 10% or more if you are 65 or older, totally blind in one or both eyes, or have lost the use of a limb. Other local-option exemptions may also apply.
Sources: Texas Tax Code §11.131 (full 100% disabled veteran homestead exemption) and §11.22 (partial exemption tiers, any one property). Verify current exemption amounts and any local additions with the Bexar Appraisal District or the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts.
Can You Use Both Exemptions at the Same Time?
Yes — and most veterans don't know this.
Complete elimination of all property taxes on your primary residence / homestead. No cap on home value. Applies to all taxing entities. Renews automatically.
Fixed assessed value reduction ($5,000–$12,000 depending on rating) applied to any one property you own — second home, vacation property, or investment property. Not limited to your homestead.
A veteran paid at the 100% rate (100% rating or IU) who owns their primary home in San Antonio and a second property in Boerne can:
① Apply §11.131 to the San Antonio primary residence → $0 property taxes on that home.
② Apply §11.22 to the Boerne second property → $12,000 reduction in assessed value on that property.
Both exemptions are active simultaneously. The §11.22 application for a second property uses Form 50-135 filed with the appraisal district for the county where that property is located. You must own the property as of January 1 of the application year.
No partial reduction. No cap on home value. No school district taxes, no county taxes, no city taxes, no special district taxes. A homestead that qualifies under §11.131 is fully exempt from all property taxes. On a $450,000 home inside the City of San Antonio, the full 2026 tax before any exemptions would be about $10,350–$10,620 (North East or Northside ISD, Bexar County 2026 rates); special districts add more. The exemption removes all of it, every year you qualify and live there. Confirm your specific savings with your tax statement or BCAD.
How to Apply for the Exemption in San Antonio
The Bexar Appraisal District (BCAD) handles all exemption applications for properties in Bexar County — including San Antonio, Helotes, Converse, Schertz, and other municipalities within the county.
Surviving Spouse Eligibility
The surviving spouse of a veteran who qualified for the 100% exemption (or would have, had it existed when the veteran died) keeps the full exemption on the same home if the spouse has not remarried and the home was the spouse's homestead when the veteran died and still is (§11.131(c)). If the spouse later moves, the new homestead's exemption is limited to the dollar amount of the old home's exemption in the last year it was received, so the new home may not be fully exempt; the old appraisal district provides a certificate of that amount (§11.131(d)). The surviving spouse of a service member killed or fatally injured in the line of duty gets a full exemption on the spouse's homestead if not remarried, with the same dollar-amount limit on a later home (§11.133). The surviving spouse of a service member who died on active duty can also take a $5,000 partial exemption on one property (§11.22(d)). Surviving spouses apply to the Bexar Appraisal District; a late homestead application from a surviving spouse is accepted up to two years after the delinquency date (§11.431).
Texas Veteran Property Tax FAQ
Questions Christopher hears most from veteran buyers and homeowners in San Antonio
Does the 100% exemption apply to the full home value — even luxury homes?
What is the difference between the homestead exemption and the veteran disability exemption?
Can I transfer the exemption if I buy a new home in Texas?
What if my VA disability rating increases after I buy?
Does the exemption apply to investment properties or rental homes?
I just bought a home in San Antonio — when should I file?
Work With a Veteran Who Knows This Benefit Firsthand.
Christopher Beal is a 100% permanently and totally disabled Army veteran who has personally used the Texas veteran property tax exemption on his own San Antonio home. Ranked #13 (2024), #14 (2025) and #20 (2026) among the San Antonio Business Journal's Top 25 Individual Agents. 7× eXp ICON Agent · 3× Platinum Top 50. When veteran clients ask about this benefit, he's not reading from a script — he's been through the BCAD application process, knows what documents are required, and understands the real-dollar impact on your homeownership costs. He factors the exemption into every veteran buyer's purchasing analysis, because it fundamentally changes the true cost of ownership.
Maximize Your
Veteran Benefits
at Every Step.
The property tax exemption is one piece. Zero down payment with a VA loan, no PMI, and no VA funding fee if you receive VA disability compensation are the others. Christopher Beal knows how to stack all of these benefits into a purchase that makes financial sense — because he's used them himself.