How to Fill Out Form BOE-58-AH: Attachments, Deadlines, and Filing

Form BOE-58-AH is the claim you file with your county assessor to keep a parent-to-child property transfer from being reassessed to current market value under Proposition 13. To fill out Form BOE-58-AH, you enter the property’s Assessor’s Parcel Number, the transfer date, both parties’ Social Security numbers, the family relationship, whether the property was the parent’s principal residence, and any prior use of the $1 million non-residence exclusion, then both the transferor (or executor) and the transferee sign under penalty of perjury and file the form with the county assessor where the property sits.¹ One boundary to check first: this form applies only to transfers that occurred on or before February 15, 2021. Transfers on or after February 16, 2021 fall under Proposition 19 and use Form BOE-19-P instead.²

Before You Start: Confirm the Transfer Qualifies

The exclusion under Revenue and Taxation Code section 63.1 covers direct transfers of real property between parents and their children, whether by gift, sale, inheritance, or court order.³ “Children” includes biological children, stepchildren while the step-relationship exists, sons-in-law, daughters-in-law, and children adopted before age 18. A stepchild loses eligibility if the biological parent and stepparent divorce. A son-in-law or daughter-in-law stays eligible after a spouse’s death unless they remarry, and loses eligibility immediately on divorce.⁴

The transfer must be between individual people. Real property held in an LLC, corporation, or partnership does not qualify, even when the entity is entirely owned by eligible family members, and transferring a partnership interest instead of the property itself is also ineligible. Property held in a revocable living trust is typically treated as individually owned for this purpose.⁴

Two dollar rules shape how you’ll answer the form’s questions. The transferor’s principal residence is excluded with no cap on value. Other real property — rental homes, commercial buildings, vacant land — is excluded up to $1 million in full cash value per transferor, cumulative over that parent’s lifetime. Two parents who jointly own property can combine their exclusions for up to $2 million of non-residence property in a single transfer.³

Getting the Form

Obtain the form from the county assessor’s office in the county where the property sits. Some counties post it on their websites; others require a direct request.⁵ The Board of Equalization also hosts a sample version, though your county’s edition may have small formatting differences.¹ Always use the county’s own copy when possible.

What Each Part of the Form Asks For

Assessor’s Parcel Number (APN). Copy it exactly from your property tax bill or the county assessor’s online parcel search. A wrong APN can delay processing for months.

Transfer date. Enter the date the deed was recorded, or the date of death if the transfer happened through inheritance. This date is what determines whether Proposition 58 (this form) or Proposition 19 (a different form) governs the claim.

Social Security numbers. Required for both the transferor and the transferee. The assessor and the state use these to track each parent’s $1 million lifetime non-residence exclusion across counties.¹

Type of transfer. Indicate whether the property passed by death (inheritance) or during the transferor’s lifetime (gift or sale).

Principal residence status. Say whether the property was the transferor’s principal residence. This answer decides whether the unlimited exclusion applies or the $1 million cap does. Under the pre-February 2021 rules, the receiving child did not need to move in.

Family relationship. Certify the specific relationship between transferor and transferee. The assessor can request legal proof, so make sure the certified relationship matches what your supporting documents will show.⁶

Previous exclusions used by the transferor. If this parent has used any portion of the $1 million non-residence exclusion before, list every prior transfer: county, parcel number, address, transfer date, and the names of the transferees. Leaving this blank when there are prior exclusions is a common reason claims stall.

Allocation of the exclusion. If the property’s full cash value exceeds the exclusion amount still available, attach a statement specifying how much of the exclusion you are claiming and how it should be allocated across the property.¹

Signatures and Certifications

Both parties sign. The transferor (or the executor of the transferor’s estate) certifies the family relationship and confirms they are not also claiming a base-year-value transfer under Section 69.5 on the same property. The transferee certifies the relationship from their side. Both signatures are made under penalty of perjury, so read the certification language before signing.⁶

Documents to Attach

An incomplete claim slows processing as much as a missing one. Include:

A full copy of the trust or will, plus every amendment, if the transfer happened through one. The form requires this; it is not optional.¹
A copy of the grant deed, quitclaim deed, or court order that transferred the property.
The death certificate, when the transfer resulted from the parent’s death.
Birth certificates, adoption records, or marriage certificates to prove the relationship, if the assessor asks.
The list of any prior transfers that used part of the transferor’s $1 million exclusion.

Keep copies of everything you submit. If review turns up an inconsistency, the assessor’s staff will contact you, and your own file lets you respond without delay.

Where and How to Submit

Mail or hand-deliver the completed form and attachments to the county assessor’s office in the county where the property is located. If you mail it, use certified mail with a return receipt; the postmark date serves as the filing date and the receipt protects you if anything goes missing. Some counties accept in-person drop-offs at their public service counters during business hours.

There is no filing fee for BOE-58-AH. If you are also recording a new deed as part of the transfer, the county recorder’s office charges its own separate recording fee.

After receiving your claim, the assessor reviews it and may ask for additional evidence. Processing times vary by county and can run several months or more. If the claim is approved, the assessor issues a corrected tax bill reflecting the excluded value, and any excess taxes already paid based on the reassessed value are refunded.

Filing Deadline and What Late Filing Costs

File within three years of the transfer date, or before the property is transferred to a third party, whichever comes first. The claim is also treated as timely if filed within six months after the county mails a notice of supplemental or escape assessment for the property.³

Missing the three-year window does not end the claim, but it costs you money. A late filing, provided the property has not been sold to a third party, grants the exclusion only starting from the tax year in which you actually file. You lose the retroactive benefit back to the original transfer date, and the assessed value is set at the original base-year value factored forward for inflation and any new construction through the year you file.⁴ Years of overpaid taxes in the gap are not recoverable, so file as soon as the paperwork is ready.

If the Assessor Denies Your Claim

When a BOE-58-AH claim is denied, the property is reassessed at current market value and you receive a supplemental tax bill for the difference. You can contest that reassessment by filing an Assessment Appeal Application (Form BOE-305-AH) with the clerk of the Assessment Appeals Board in your county, during the county’s designated filing period. Filing periods vary by county, so confirm the dates with the clerk’s office.⁷

A parent, child, spouse, domestic partner, or co-owner can file the appeal on your behalf without being formally designated as an agent, though the filer must state the relationship on the application and be ready to prove it.⁷ If the Assessment Appeals Board rules against you, that decision is final at the administrative level. Your remaining option is a challenge in the superior court of the county where the property is located, filed within six months of the board’s decision.

1
California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. BOE-58-AH Claim for Reassessment Exclusion for Transfer Between Parent and Child
2
Board of Equalization. Proposition 19
3
California Legislative Information. California Code Revenue and Taxation Code RTC 63.1
4
California State Board of Equalization. Exclusions from Reappraisal Frequently Asked Questions
5
California State Board of Equalization. Property Tax Forms for Use by County Assessors’ Offices and Local Appeals Boards
6
California State Board of Equalization. LTA 2003/018 Revenue and Taxation Code Section 63.1 Parent-Child Exclusion
7
California State Board of Equalization. Assessment Appeals Frequently Asked Questions