The NYS State School Tax Relief Program, also known as the STAR, provides homeowners in New York with relief on their property taxes. There are two types of STAR programs – the Basic STAR and the Enhanced STAR.
To qualify for the Basic STAR, you need to fulfill these two requirements:
- You must own a home in New York, and it must be your primary residence.
- To receive the STAR credit your income must be $500,000 or less. To qualify for the STAR exemption, you need to make $250,000 or less.
To qualify for the Enhanced STAR, you need to fulfill three requirements:
- You must own a home in New York, and it must be your primary residence.
- You must be 65 or older. If you are filing with a spouse, only one of you need to be at least 65 by December 31.
- In 2019, in order to receive the benefits, you need to have an income of $86,300 or less. In 2020, the limit is $88,050 or less.
The NYS STAR program has been around since 1997, but several changes were made in 2019 that will affect the ways you receive your refund. For tax year 2019, STAR recipients will receive this benefit in one of two ways:
- If your income is below $500,000, you will be receiving the STAR credit and a refund check in the mail from the NYS Tax Department.
- If your income is under $250,000, you will qualify for the STAR exemption, and a direct reduction for your school tax bill will be applied.
If your income is more than $250,000 you must switch to the STAR credit program in order to keep receiving this benefit. If you make less than $250,000, you have the option to switch to the credit or stay with the exemption. It may be more beneficial to switch to the STAR credit because the refund may increase by as much as 2% each year, whereas the STAR exemption will NOT increase.
To register for the STAR program or switch from STAR exemption to credit, please click here or call 518-457-2036.
The good news is that once you’ve registered for the STAR credit, you will not need to re-apply every year. If you move, you will need to re-register in order to receive the benefits for your new home. The deadline to apply (for most communities) for the 2020 tax year is March 1. Please contact your assessor for the deadline specific to your community.
By Tiffany Chow