If you own your home in Arkansas and live in it as your primary residence, you can claim the Arkansas homestead tax credit by filing a short application with your county assessor before October 15. Starting with 2026 tax bills, the credit takes up to $600 off what you owe in property tax each year.1Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. Property Tax Relief You only have to file once in most counties; after that the credit rides along with the property year after year, as long as you keep living there.
How Much the Credit Is Worth
The credit is a straight dollar-for-dollar reduction on your real property tax bill. The maximum is $600 for 2026 tax bills, raised from $500 in 2025.2Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. Fiscal Impact Statement – SB263 If your bill is $1,400, you pay $800. If your bill is less than $600, the credit erases it, but you don’t get a refund for the leftover amount.
Who Qualifies
The rule is simple at the core: you own the property, and you use it as your principal place of residence. Single-family homes, manufactured homes, and homes held in a revocable or irrevocable trust all count.1Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. Property Tax Relief You have to be a legal resident of Arkansas, and the property must be classified as a homestead before January 1 of the year after the assessment.3Justia Law. Arkansas Code Title 26 – Section 26-26-1118
You get one homestead credit statewide. Not one per property, one per person. A primary residence and a lake house doesn’t work. Two homes in different counties doesn’t work either. Claiming the credit on a second property triggers penalties and repayment on that second claim.
How to Apply
The county assessor’s office where the property sits handles everything. Get the homestead claim form from that office. Some counties post it online, others hand it out at the counter or mail it on request.
Bring documentation showing who you are and that you live at the property. Assessors typically want an Arkansas driver’s license or state ID with the property address, plus proof of ownership such as a recorded deed or closing statement. If the home is in a trust, bring the trust documents showing your role as trustee or beneficiary.
Submit the completed form and documents in person or by mail. Some counties accept applications through an online portal. The assessor does not add the credit automatically, so filing is on you.
The October 15 Deadline
Applications are due by October 15 of the year after the assessment.4Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. Arkansas Assessment Coordination Division – Important Deadlines Miss it and you lose the credit for that tax year. A buyer who closes in 2026 has until October 15, 2027, to file for the 2026 assessment, but there’s no reason to wait; file soon after closing while you still have the paperwork handy.
File Once, Not Every Year
In most Arkansas counties, one approval carries you forward. The credit renews automatically each year as long as you continue to live in the home as your primary residence. Some counties run periodic eligibility checks and may ask you to reconfirm, but you won’t be reapplying annually.
Selling, Moving, or Changing How You Use the Home
Once the homestead designation is set for the year, it stays for the full assessment year. Sell mid-year and the credit still applies to that year’s tax bill. Buyers and sellers sometimes prorate the benefit in closing paperwork, but that’s a private arrangement, not something the assessor manages.
A buyer has to file a fresh homestead application. The previous owner’s approval does not transfer.
You lose eligibility if you move out and make somewhere else your primary residence, turn the home into a rental, or convert it to commercial use. When any of that happens, you’re required to notify the county assessor promptly. Most offices have a specific form or affidavit for reporting changes in use or ownership.
Penalties for Double or False Claims
The most common violation is claiming the credit on more than one property. The penalty applies to the improper second claim; your legitimate original claim stays intact. On the second parcel, you’ll owe back all credits received, plus penalties.5Arkansas State Legislature. Exhibit E.2 – Homestead Tax Credit Penalties The assessor’s decision can be appealed to county court within 30 days and from there to circuit court. Penalty and repayment actions carry a three-year statute of limitations.
The 5% Assessment Cap
Filing for the credit does more than shave $600 off your bill. Designating your property as a homestead also caps how fast its assessed value can climb after a countywide reappraisal. The increase is limited to 5% per year on a homestead, compared with 10% on non-homestead property like commercial buildings or vacant land.6Justia Law. Arkansas Constitution Amendment 79 The cap covers reappraisal-driven increases only. New construction or substantial improvements can still push the value up outside the cap.
Assessment Freeze at 65 or With a Disability
If you’re 65 or older, or you meet the Social Security Administration’s definition of disabled, you can have the assessed value of your homestead frozen.1Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. Property Tax Relief After the freeze, future reappraisals won’t raise the taxable value. The frozen figure is either the assessed value when you turned 65 or became disabled, or the value at the date of purchase if you bought after reaching that threshold.6Justia Law. Arkansas Constitution Amendment 79
The freeze is separate from the credit and stacks with it. You get the $600 credit and the frozen value. Contact your assessor and bring proof of age or disability to apply. New construction can still change the assessed value; ordinary market appreciation cannot.
The freeze does not run with the property. If a qualifying homeowner sells, the buyer has to independently qualify based on their own age or disability.7Justia Law. Arkansas Code Title 26 – Section 26-26-1120
A Full Exemption for Some Disabled Veterans
Certain disabled veterans qualify for something larger than the credit: a complete exemption from state property taxes on the homestead and personal property. It applies if the VA has awarded you special monthly compensation for the loss or loss of use of one or more limbs, total blindness in one or both eyes, or a 100% service-connected permanent disability. Give your county collector a VA letter verifying that status. You must be an Arkansas citizen and resident. Surviving spouses and minor dependent children of qualifying veterans can also claim the exemption while they remain Arkansas residents.8Justia Law. Arkansas Code Title 26 – Section 26-3-306
If Your Lender Escrows the Taxes
The credit still applies when a mortgage servicer collects property taxes through escrow. The county bills the reduced amount, and the lender should adjust the escrow at its next annual review. Servicers sometimes set the initial escrow at closing without accounting for the credit, especially if you haven’t filed yet. Once the county confirms the credit on your account, send the approval documentation to your loan servicer so they can lower the escrow payment sooner rather than later.