Every Florida resident who has legal or beneficial title in equity to real property in the State of Florida, who resides on said real property, and in good faith makes the same his or her permanent residence on or before January 1st of the year application is made, shall be entitled to the $25,000 Homestead Exemption.

Additional Homestead Exemption up to $25,000 - The additional homestead exemption is automatically applied to any property that receives the original $25,000 homestead tax exemption. To receive the full additional $25,000 homestead exemption the property's assessed value must be at least $75,000. If the assessed value is lower than $75,000, the additional homestead exemption will be less than $25,000. (This does not apply to school levies.)

For example:

Homeowners applying for the homestead exemption must own and occupy their Volusia County home as their permanent residence prior to January 1st. Homeowners who owned and occupied their residence after January 1st are encouraged to pre-file an application for the next year.

Homeowners can download the Homestead application below and fill it out before coming in or complete the application in person at one of our four office locations. Please review the required documentation section below. Required documents must be brought in at time of application.

Click here for the Homestead Application

All applications being submitted must include copies of the following required documentation as proofs of residency for each owner:

1. Copy of Florida Driver's License showing residential address. If you do not drive, provide a copy of a Florida Identification Card. Florida ID cards are available from the Department of Motor Vehicles (copy the front of card only).
2. Florida Vehicle Registration or Florida Voter's Registration card, if registered
3. Social Security Number for each applicant and spouse even if the spouse does not own and/or reside on the property.
4. Review the requirements listed below in this section and obtain the appropriate documents.

Non-citizens: If you are not a citizen of the United States, a copy of your Permanent Residence Card (front and back).

Trusts: If title to the property on which you are applying is held in a trust, a copy of the entire Trust Agreement must be submitted, with the application.

A Supreme Court decision in the Garcia v. Andonie case(sc11-554, October 4, 2013), now allows granting of the homestead exemption to persons who do not have U.S. citizenship, but have children that were born in the U.S., who are legally or naturally dependent upon their parents. In order to qualify for the homestead exemption, the property must be the permanent residence of the children. The applicant must have documented evidence(i.e. IRS tax return) showing the dependent status of the children, as well as birth certificate and other documents listed below.

The Property Appraiser will consider the following items to establish the children's permanent residency, when applying for the homestead exemption:

1. Florida Driver's License or Florida ID Card
2. Florida Vehicle Registration
3. Visas from the Department of Homeland Security
4. Declaration of Domicile
5. Utility bills at the property where permanent residency is being claimed
6. Evidence of location where the dependent children are registered for school
7. Birth Certificate of dependent children are required documentation

If you currently receive a homestead exemption for property you own and occupy as your permanent residence in Volusia County, and you have moved to a new home in Volusia County as your permanent residence, you must complete a new Homestead Exemption Application listing the new home address as your permanent residence. Homestead exemption DOES NOT automatically transfer. Our staff will take care of removing the former exemption and applying a new exemption for the appropriate tax year. Additionally, don't forget about Portability. Be sure to read the following to see if you qualify.

The Florida homestead exemption "Save Our Homes" benefit is now "portable" because of the passage of the constitutional amendment on January 29, 2008. The "Save Our Homes" benefit is the difference between the market value and the assessed value of a homestead property due to the annual limit on increases in assessed value. The market value and assessed value of the previous homestead and newly established homestead are determined by the property appraiser of the counties where the respective properties are located and will be used to determine the amount of benefit that can be transferred.

To be eligible, you must apply within three years, have a "Portability" benefit, complete the Save Our Homes Portability Application, and include it with your Homestead Exemption Application.