Honolulu Property Tax Exemptions: Who Qualifies and How to File

Honolulu property tax exemptions let an owner-occupant subtract $140,000 from a home’s assessed value, with larger breaks for seniors, a full exemption for totally disabled veterans, a $25,000 exemption for blind, deaf, or totally disabled residents, and a separate credit that caps property tax at three percent of gross income for lower-income households. The home exemption is a one-time filing. The deadline to claim any of these for the next tax year is September 30.

The Standard Home Exemption

Under Revised Ordinances of Honolulu Section 8-10.3, $140,000 of a qualifying home’s assessed value is subtracted before property tax is calculated.¹ A home assessed at $900,000 is taxed on $760,000. A home assessed below the exemption amount pays nothing.

Owners aged 65 and older qualify for a higher exemption. The figure adjusts periodically, so confirm the current senior tier with the Real Property Assessment Division. One exemption per taxpayer. Spouses living together cannot claim separate exemptions on different properties; spouses who live apart may each claim half of one exemption on their respective homes.¹

Who Qualifies

You must own and occupy the property as your principal home on the date of assessment. The exemption is limited to individual owners. Corporations, partnerships, and companies cannot claim it.¹

The city looks at several indicators of genuine residence: occupancy for more than 270 calendar days in the year, voter registration in the city, military stationing orders, and whether you file a Hawaii income tax return showing a Honolulu address.² No single factor is required, but spending most of the year elsewhere while claiming the exemption is the kind of thing that triggers audits.

Your deed must be recorded on or before September 30 preceding the tax year.¹ A long-term lease works in place of a deed if it runs at least five years for residential purposes and requires you to pay the property taxes.

If you use part of the home commercially, you keep the exemption on the residential portion and lose it on the rest.¹

Totally Disabled Veterans

A home owned and occupied by a veteran who is totally disabled from injuries received while on active duty with the U.S. armed forces is exempt from all property taxes, aside from special assessments, under ROH Section 8-10.5.³ This is a complete exemption rather than a deduction from assessed value.

The exemption also covers homes owned jointly by the veteran and a spouse. If the veteran dies, an unmarried surviving spouse who continues to own and occupy the home keeps the full exemption.³

Blind, Deaf, or Totally Disabled Residents

ROH Section 8-10.7 removes up to $25,000 of taxable value for homeowners who are blind, deaf, or totally disabled.⁴ A parallel section, ROH 8-10.6, covers homeowners confined due to Hansen’s disease and uses the same combined claim form.⁵ Both require medical documentation of the qualifying condition, submitted on the Real Property Assessment Division’s combined form.

The Low-Income Tax Credit

Separate from the exemption, Honolulu offers a credit that caps your property tax at three percent of total gross income. To qualify, you must already have a home exemption on the property, no titleholder may own any other property anywhere, and the combined gross income of all titleholders must be $80,000 or less.⁶

The credit equals the difference between your assessed property tax and three percent of your gross income. Gross income is defined broadly and includes wages, investment income, Social Security payments, nontaxable pension distributions, IRA withdrawals, and tax-exempt interest.⁶ The application deadline is the same September 30 used for exemption claims. It is one of the most underused benefits for retirees on fixed incomes.

How to File

The claim form for the home exemption is Form BFS-RP-P-3, available on the Real Property Assessment Division website or at any satellite city hall.⁷ Have ready:

Your Tax Map Key (TMK), listed on prior assessment notices or the city’s online property search.
Social Security numbers for every titleholder on the deed.
Proof of age if you are claiming the senior tier: a driver’s license, state ID, or birth certificate.
Confirmation that your deed or qualifying lease is recorded at the Bureau of Conveyances before September 30.

Deadline and What Happens After

Your claim must reach the Department of Budget and Fiscal Services by September 30 preceding the tax year. Miss that date and you lose the exemption for the entire upcoming tax year. The director may extend the deadline to December 31 for good cause, but relying on that is not a plan.⁸

The Real Property Assessment Division mails Notices of Assessment on or before December 15.⁹ That notice shows your assessed value and whether the exemption was applied. Read it carefully. It is your window to catch an error before the tax bill is calculated.

Auto-Renewal and Reporting Changes

Once approved, the home exemption renews automatically each year without any further filing.⁸ In exchange, you have an ongoing obligation to report anything that changes your eligibility: selling the property, moving out, converting it to a rental, or any other change in use or ownership.

Failing to report a disqualifying change triggers a penalty of 10 percent of the taxes that would have been owed without the exemption, plus interest at 12 percent per year from the original due date.⁸ A fraudulent claim adds a criminal fine of up to $2,000 on top of back taxes, interest, and penalties.⁶

If You Leave Your Home Temporarily

Two kinds of absence do not kill the exemption, provided you file the right paperwork. If you move into a licensed long-term care facility or adult residential care home in Hawaii, the exemption continues as long as you designate the facility on the required form and the home is not rented, leased, or sold while you are away.¹

If you vacate for renovations and move to a temporary residence within the city, the exemption also survives. File a change-in-status report with the director that includes your building permit number, the renovation start date, and your temporary address.¹ Without that filing, the city may read your absence as a disqualifying event.

Homes Held in Trusts or LLCs

A revocable living trust does not automatically disqualify you, but transferring the home into a trust requires you to re-file your exemption claim with a copy of the trust document attached. A short-form certification is sufficient if you created the trust; the city wants the full trust if you are a beneficiary rather than the settlor.²

Property held in an LLC cannot receive the home exemption at all. The ordinance limits it to individuals and excludes corporations, partnerships, and companies.¹ If you are weighing an LLC for liability protection or estate planning, factor in the lost tax benefit.

If Your Claim Is Denied

You can appeal a denial, an exemption amount that looks wrong, or the assessed value itself to the Board of Review. The deadline is January 15 following the mailing of the Notice of Assessment.¹⁰ Grounds include denial of an exemption you believe you qualified for, disagreement with the assessed value, or a dispute over classification.¹¹

Keep copies of everything you submitted with the original claim, including supporting documents and proof of mailing or an online submission confirmation. Appeals without documentation rarely succeed.

1
Honolulu, HI Code of Ordinances. Revised Ordinances of Honolulu – Section 8-10.3 Exemption – Homes
2
City and County of Honolulu. Real Property Assessment Division – Exemption FAQ
3
Honolulu, HI Code of Ordinances. Revised Ordinances of Honolulu – Section 8-10.5 Exemption – Homes of Totally Disabled Veterans
4
City and County of Honolulu. Claim for Exemption – Homes of Hansens Disease and Homes of Blind, Deaf, or Totally Disabled
5
Honolulu, HI Code of Ordinances. Revised Ordinances of Honolulu – Section 8-10.6 Exemption – Persons Affected With Leprosy
6
City and County of Honolulu. Real Property Tax Credit for Homeowners 2026-2027
7
City and County of Honolulu. Real Property Assessment Division – Claim for Home Exemption Form BFS-RP-P-3
8
Honolulu, HI Code of Ordinances. Revised Ordinances of Honolulu – Section 8-10.1 Claims for Certain Exemptions
9
City and County of Honolulu. Real Property Assessment Division
10
City and County of Honolulu. Real Property Assessment Division – Appeal Information
11
Honolulu, HI Code of Ordinances. Revised Ordinances of Honolulu – Section 8-12.9 Appeal to Board of Review