Hidalgo County Letter of Authorization: Form 50-162

To let someone else handle your Hidalgo County property tax business, file the Hidalgo County letter of authorization on Texas Comptroller Form 50-162, the Appointment of Agent for Property Tax Matters. Texas Tax Code Section 1.111 gives every property owner the right to designate a representative, but that designation only takes effect once the signed form is on file with the Hidalgo County Appraisal District.1State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 1.111 – Designation of Agent Homemade letters and generic power-of-attorney documents don’t work here. The appraisal district can only accept the comptroller-prescribed form.2Cornell Law Institute. 34 Texas Administrative Code 9.3044 – Appointment of Agents for Property Tax Matters

The Right Form and Where to Get It

Form 50-162 is available on the Texas Comptroller’s website or at the Hidalgo County Appraisal District office.3Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Appointment of Agent for Property Tax Matters (Form 50-162) Don’t confuse it with Form 50-132, the Property Owner’s Notice of Protest. That’s a separate document used to open a protest, not to name a representative.4Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Property Tax Forms If you’re hiring a tax consultant or attorney for a protest, they’ll usually provide the form, but the responsibility to file it correctly is yours.

What to Put on the Form

Owner and Property

Start with your name, mailing address, and phone number as the property owner. Then identify the property. You can authorize the agent for every property listed in your name, or limit the authorization to specific parcels. For specific parcels, provide at least one identifier: the appraisal district account number, the physical address, or the legal description. The chief appraiser can ask for additional information if what you provide isn’t enough to match the property.3Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Appointment of Agent for Property Tax Matters (Form 50-162) The account number, which appears on your annual notice of appraised value, is the cleanest identifier.

Agent and Scope

List your agent’s full name, mailing address, and phone number. Then decide how much authority they have. You can grant broad authority over all property tax matters for the identified property, or you can limit them to specific tasks by writing in exactly what they’re permitted to do.3Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Appointment of Agent for Property Tax Matters (Form 50-162)

Confidential Information and Delivery Boxes

Two checkboxes on the form deserve a careful read. One authorizes your agent to receive confidential information about your property. The other directs the appraisal district, the appraisal review board, and participating taxing units to send communications to your agent instead of to you. If you check that delivery box, the district is not required to send you copies, which means appraisal notices, hearing notices, and related mail can go only to your agent.3Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Appointment of Agent for Property Tax Matters (Form 50-162) If you want to keep seeing your own paperwork, leave that box unchecked.

Expiration and Signature

You can set an expiration date. If you leave the date blank, the authorization stays active until it’s revoked in writing.1State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 1.111 – Designation of Agent For a single protest, an expiration date shortly after the expected hearing is a clean way to close things out.

The form must be signed by the property owner, a property manager authorized to designate agents, or another person authorized to act for the owner. The person being named as the agent can’t sign for the owner. If someone other than the owner signs, the district may request documentation showing that person’s authority.3Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Appointment of Agent for Property Tax Matters (Form 50-162) This comes up often with LLCs, corporations, and trusts, where an officer or trustee signs on behalf of the entity.

One Agent Per Property

Texas law allows only one agent per property at a time. Filing a new Form 50-162 for the same parcel automatically revokes the prior agent, so you don’t need a separate revocation to switch representatives.1State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 1.111 – Designation of Agent Owners with multiple parcels can name different agents for different properties, but each parcel gets one representative.

Filing With the Hidalgo County Appraisal District

Send or deliver the completed form to the Hidalgo County Appraisal District at 4405 S. Professional Drive, Edinburg, TX 78539.5Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Hidalgo County Directory There is no filing fee. Because Hidalgo County’s population exceeds 500,000, the appraisal district is required to offer electronic signing and filing of the agent designation.1State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 1.111 – Designation of Agent The district’s online portal accepts protest filings and evidence uploads as well.6Hidalgo County Appraisal District. Protest Process If you file electronically close to a deadline, confirm with the district that your submission was received and processed. The authorization is not effective until the district has it on file.

Get It in Before Your Protest Deadline

An agent can’t file a protest for you unless Form 50-162 is already on file with the district. In Texas, the protest deadline is May 15 or 30 days after the appraisal district mails your notice of appraised value, whichever is later.7State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 41.44 – Notice of Protest Owners commonly hire a consultant in late April, assume the consultant will handle everything, and then find out the authorization never made it to the district in time. If you’re bringing in a representative for a protest, submit the Form 50-162 alongside the protest form, or well before the deadline either way.

Revoking an Agent’s Authorization

To end an agent’s authority before its expiration date, either you or the agent files a written revocation with the appraisal district. The comptroller provides Form 50-813 for this.8Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Revocation of Appointment of Agent for Property Tax Matters (Form 50-813) The revocation has to identify the property by account number, physical address, or legal description.

  • The revocation is effective when the appraisal district has it, not when you sign or mail it.
  • If an agent represents you on multiple parcels and you only revoke authority for some of them, the agent’s authority continues on the parcels you didn’t list.
  • An agent can revoke their own appointment, but they must notify you by certified mail at your last known address.9State of Texas. href=”https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/GetStatute.aspx?Code=TX&Value=1.111″ target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>Texas Tax Code 1.111 – Designation of Agent
  • Filing a new Form 50-162 for the same property automatically revokes the earlier agent, so a separate Form 50-813 isn’t needed when you’re simply switching representatives.8Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Revocation of Appointment of Agent for Property Tax Matters (Form 50-813)

False Statements on the Form

Both the appointment and revocation forms carry a warning that making a false statement is a Class A misdemeanor or state jail felony under Texas Penal Code Section 37.10.3Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Appointment of Agent for Property Tax Matters (Form 50-162) That covers filing an authorization without the owner’s knowledge, forging a signature, or misrepresenting authority to sign for an entity. If you’re signing on behalf of a business or trust, be sure your authority to do so is real and documented.