Texas gives disabled veterans two main property tax breaks. If the VA has awarded you 100% disability compensation for a service-connected disability and rated you 100% disabled or individually unemployable, your residence homestead is exempt from property tax on its total appraised value (Tax Code 11.131). If your rating is lower, you get a partial exemption, from $5,000 to $12,000 of value depending on your rating, that you can apply to any one property you own (Tax Code 11.22). Unremarried surviving spouses can qualify in several situations. You apply with your county appraisal district, in Tarrant County that's the Tarrant Appraisal District, not through your lender, and it has nothing to do with whether you use a VA loan.
Here's who qualifies for what, how to apply, what happens when you buy or move mid-year, and how the exemption shows up in your mortgage escrow.
The exemptions at a glance
- 100% disabled veteran homestead exemption (Tax Code 11.131): total exemption of your residence homestead's appraised value. Applies to your homestead only.
- Disabled veteran partial exemption (Tax Code 11.22): a set dollar amount off the value of any one property you own, based on your rating.
- Donated homestead (Tax Code 11.132): if a charitable organization donated your homestead and your rating is under 100%, the exemption equals your rating as a percentage of value.
- Surviving spouses (Tax Code 11.131(c), 11.133, 11.136): total homestead exemptions for certain unremarried surviving spouses, explained below.
The Texas Comptroller summarizes all of these on its exemptions page (Texas Comptroller, property tax exemptions).
The 100% disabled veteran exemption
Under Tax Code 11.131, a disabled veteran who has been awarded 100% disability compensation due to a service-connected disability, and a rating of 100% disabled or of individual unemployability, is exempt from taxation on the total appraised value of their residence homestead (Texas Tax Code 11.131). The Comptroller clarifies two points people get wrong (Comptroller 100% disabled veteran FAQ):
- You need both the 100% compensation award and either a 100% rating or an individual unemployability determination. You don't need both a 100% rating and an unemployability finding.
- It applies only to your residence homestead, not rentals or a second home. For other property, the 11.22 partial exemption may apply, and an eligible veteran can receive both.
Your home has to qualify as a residence homestead first, which means you own it and live in it as your principal residence. My article on the Texas homestead exemption covers that part.
The partial exemption by disability rating
Tax Code 11.22 gives a partial exemption on any one property you own, based on your VA rating. The Comptroller lists these amounts (Comptroller disabled veteran FAQ):
- 10% to 29%: up to $5,000 off the property's value.
- 30% to 49%: up to $7,500.
- 50% to 69%: up to $10,000.
- 70% to 100%: up to $12,000.
The Comptroller also says a veteran can qualify for $12,000 if they're 65 or older with a rating of at least 10%, totally blind in one or both eyes, or have lost use of one or more limbs. An unremarried surviving spouse and surviving children under 18 of a disabled veteran may also qualify for a partial exemption. These amounts come off taxable value, not off your tax bill, so what you actually save depends on your local tax rates. Check the Comptroller's page for the current figures before you rely on them.
Surviving spouses
- Spouse of a 100% disabled veteran (11.131(c)): total homestead exemption if the veteran qualified, or would have qualified, when they died, the spouse hasn't remarried, and the home was the spouse's homestead when the veteran died and still is.
- Spouse of a service member killed in the line of duty (11.133): total homestead exemption if the spouse hasn't remarried.
- Spouse of a veteran who died from a PACT Act qualifying condition (11.136): total homestead exemption, regardless of the veteran's rating at death, if the spouse hasn't remarried.
If a qualifying surviving spouse moves, the exemption on the new homestead is generally capped at the dollar amount of the exemption on the old one in the last year it applied, so the new home may not be fully exempt (Texas Tax Code 11.131(d), 11.133(c), 11.136(d)). The appraisal district that handled the old home issues a certificate showing that amount.
How and when to apply
- Where: the appraisal district for the county where the property sits. In Tarrant County, that's the Tarrant Appraisal District.
- Which form: Form 50-114, Residence Homestead Exemption Application, for the homestead exemptions (11.131, 11.132, 11.133, 11.136). Form 50-135, Disabled Veteran's or Survivor's Exemption Application, for the 11.22 partial exemption.
- Proof: your VA documentation of your rating and compensation. The Comptroller says a driver's license or state ID isn't proof of a disability rating.
- Deadline: April 30 is the usual deadline, but late applications are allowed. The Comptroller says you can file for the 100% exemption and the 11.22 exemption up to five years after the delinquency date for the taxes on the property.
Buying or moving in the middle of the year
This is where the exemption meets your mortgage. The Comptroller says that if you qualify after January 1, the 100% exemption can start right away for the portion of the year after you qualify. If you move, tax is due on the old home for the part of the year after its exemption ends, and the new home's exemption can start immediately when you qualify it, with tax owed for the part of the year before (Comptroller 100% disabled veteran FAQ).
What that means in practice when you buy in Fort Worth or anywhere in Tarrant County:
- At closing: property taxes are usually prorated between buyer and seller based on an estimate, and the title company works from the seller's current status. Your exemption doesn't exist on that property until you apply and the district grants it.
- Your escrow account: until the exemption is granted on your new home, your lender estimates taxes without it. Plan on that in your first-year escrow deposit.
- After it's granted: your servicer's annual escrow analysis picks up the lower tax bill. Under federal rules, if an analysis shows a surplus of $50 or more and you're current, the servicer generally has to refund it within 30 days (12 CFR 1024.17(f)(2)).
Apply as soon as you've closed and moved in. Every month you wait is a month your escrow keeps collecting for taxes you may not owe.
Property tax exemption vs. VA funding fee exemption
These are two different benefits from two different places:
- The property tax exemption is a Texas benefit, granted by your appraisal district.
- The VA funding fee exemption is a federal benefit on a VA loan, shown on your Certificate of Eligibility. It applies, for example, if you receive VA compensation for a service-connected disability (VA funding fee and closing costs).
You can qualify for one and not the other. And the tax exemption doesn't depend on your loan type. A 100% disabled veteran with a conventional or FHA loan still gets it if they qualify. If you want to compare loan types, start with how VA loans work.
Fictional example
This example is made up to show the timing.
Marcus, a Marine veteran rated 100% with 100% compensation, closes on a home in North Richland Hills in June. At closing, taxes are prorated using the seller's estimate, and his lender sets up escrow based on taxes without his exemption, since it hasn't been granted yet. He files Form 50-114 with the Tarrant Appraisal District the week he moves in, with his VA benefit letter. The district grants the exemption starting from the date he qualified the home. His servicer's next escrow analysis reflects the lower tax bill, and a surplus is refunded under the federal escrow rules. Whether he used a VA loan didn't matter to the appraisal district.
Common mistakes
- Thinking the VA loan includes the tax exemption. It doesn't. You apply separately with the appraisal district.
- Thinking any rating wipes out the tax bill. Total exemption is the 100% compensation path plus the surviving spouse paths. A partial rating is a partial exemption off value.
- Waiting until next year to apply. You can qualify mid-year. Apply right after you move in.
- Using a driver's license as proof. The district needs your VA rating documentation.
- Assuming a surviving spouse's new home is fully exempt. It may be capped at the old home's exemption amount.
What to have ready
- Your VA benefit summary or award letter showing your rating and compensation.
- Your Texas driver's license or ID with the new home's address (homestead applications usually ask for it).
- Your closing documents, including the deed.
- For surviving spouses, the death certificate and documentation of the veteran's or service member's status.
Next step
If you're a disabled veteran buying in Fort Worth or anywhere in Texas, I'll set up your loan and escrow with your exemption timing in mind and walk you through filing right after closing. Book a call, or when you're ready, start an application.
Related questions
Sources
Links checked Oct 21, 2026.
- Texas Tax Code Chapter 11, Sections 11.22, 11.131 (eff. Jan 1, 2012 version), 11.132 (amended eff. Jan 1, 2018), 11.133, 11.136: https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/TX/htm/TX.11.htm
- Texas Comptroller, Property Tax Exemptions (disabled veterans and surviving spouses; retrieved Oct 21, 2026): https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/exemptions/
- Texas Comptroller, Disabled Veteran and Surviving Spouse Exemptions FAQ (11.22 amounts, deadlines; retrieved Oct 21, 2026): https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/exemptions/disabledvet-faq.php
- Texas Comptroller, 100 Percent Disabled Veteran and Surviving Spouse FAQ (mid-year qualification; retrieved Oct 21, 2026): https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/exemptions/disabledvet-100-faq.php
- Texas Comptroller Form 50-114, Residence Homestead Exemption Application: https://comptroller.texas.gov/forms/50-114.pdf
- Texas Comptroller Form 50-135, Disabled Veteran's or Survivor's Exemption Application: https://comptroller.texas.gov/forms/50-135.pdf
- Tarrant Appraisal District: https://www.tad.org/
- 12 CFR 1024.17 (Regulation X), Escrow accounts, (f)(2) surplus refunds (eCFR current): https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-12/chapter-X/part-1024/subpart-B/section-1024.17
- VA, Funding fee and closing costs (exemptions; page updated Oct 5, 2026): https://www.va.gov/housing-assistance/home-loans/funding-fee-and-closing-costs/
About the author: McKade Lively, NMLS 2704474, American Pacific Mortgage Corporation dba True North Home Loans, NMLS 1850.
Equal Housing Opportunity.
Last reviewed: Oct 2026