How to Fill Out the Bexar County Homestead Exemption Form (50-114)

To claim a residence homestead exemption in Bexar County, file Texas Comptroller Form 50-114 with the Bexar Appraisal District by April 30 of the tax year. The form is free, you can submit it online at bcad.org, by mail to P.O. Box 830248, San Antonio, TX 78283, or in person at 411 North Frio Street, and the biggest benefit is a mandatory $140,000 reduction in the value your school district can tax.¹

Who Can File

You qualify if you are an individual (not an LLC or other entity), you hold an ownership interest in the property, and you use it as your principal residence. In most cases you must have been living in the home on January 1 of the tax year. Buyers who closed after January 1 can still claim a prorated exemption for that year, provided the seller did not already claim it.²

Homeowners who are 65 or older, who have a qualifying disability, or who are 100-percent disabled veterans use the same form but can claim additional exemptions on top of the general one.

Documents to Gather First

A missing document is the most common reason an application stalls. Pull these together before you open the form:

Texas driver’s license or state-issued ID. The address on the ID must match the property address exactly. If it doesn’t, update your ID with DPS before you file.³
Your property account number from a prior tax statement or the Bexar CAD property search tool.⁴
Your recorded deed, if the property isn’t yet in your name in Bexar CAD records. If you took title through inheritance, include a death certificate and a recorded affidavit of heirship or probated will.³
Social Security number and date of birth for every owner claiming the exemption.

Applying under a special category adds paperwork. The disabled person exemption requires a Social Security Administration Benefit Verification Letter dated within the past two years. The 100-percent disabled veteran exemption requires a current VA letter showing the rating and effective date. A surviving spouse needs a marriage certificate, death certificate, and the applicable verification letter. If you had an over-65 or disability tax ceiling at a previous Texas home, request a Tax Ceiling Certificate (Form 50-311) from the former appraisal district and forward it to Bexar CAD.³

Filling Out the Six Sections

Section 1: Exemption Type

Check every box that applies: general residence homestead, age 65 or older, disabled person, disabled veteran, or a surviving spouse category. Indicate whether you currently occupy the property and whether you’re transferring a tax ceiling from a previous Texas homestead.⁵

Section 2: Owner Information

Enter the full legal name, date of birth, driver’s license or state ID number, Social Security number, and contact information for each owner. Co-owners each need to be listed with their ownership percentage. Attach a copy of each owner’s ID, and remember the address on it must match the property.⁵

Section 3: Property Information

Give the physical address, the legal description from county land records, your acquisition date, and the date you began occupying the home as your principal residence. Note any income-producing use (home office, rented room, farmland). Manufactured homes need the make, model, and ID number. Heir-property applicants should flag that status and include any relevant court filing numbers.⁵

Section 4: ID Waiver

Skip this unless you can’t produce a Texas driver’s license or state ID with the matching address and need to request a waiver. Most applicants leave it blank.

Section 5: Other Texas Property

List any other residential property you own anywhere in Texas, by county. You can only hold one homestead exemption statewide, and this section lets the district confirm it.

Section 6: Signature

Sign and date. A false statement on the application is a Class A misdemeanor or state jail felony under the Texas Penal Code.⁵

How to Submit in Bexar County

Online: go to bcad.org, open Online Services, create a login, and upload the signed form with your document scans.⁶
By mail: Bexar Appraisal District, P.O. Box 830248, San Antonio, TX 78283. Mailed applications don’t trigger an automatic confirmation, so certified mail with return receipt is worth the small extra cost.⁷
In person: deliver the paperwork to 411 North Frio Street, San Antonio, TX 78207, during business hours.

You can download the blank form from the Bexar CAD portal or the Texas Comptroller’s website. Questions go to the appraisal district directly at 210-224-2432.

Deadline and Late Filing

The standard deadline is April 30 of the tax year you’re claiming.⁵ File by then and the exemption applies cleanly to the October tax bill.

Miss it, and you still have options. A late application can be filed up to two years after the delinquency date for the taxes on that homestead.⁸ A 100-percent disabled veteran has up to five years after the delinquency date; a disabled veteran’s surviving spouse has up to two years.⁵ If a late application reduces a value you already paid taxes on, you can expect a refund once the correction is certified.

What You Actually Save

The exemption isn’t a single number. It stacks across taxing entities:

School districts must exempt $140,000 of appraised value from taxation. This is the largest piece and applies to every qualifying homestead in Texas.¹
Counties collecting farm-to-market or flood-control taxes must exempt $3,000.²
Cities and other taxing units may adopt an optional exemption of up to 20 percent of appraised value, with a $5,000 floor when the percentage would come out lower.¹

Your October statement will show each entity’s taxable value separately after the exemption is applied, so you can see the breakdown line by line.

Over-65, Disability, and 100% Disabled Veteran

Homeowners 65 or older qualify for an additional mandatory school district exemption on top of the $140,000, plus a tax ceiling: the school district portion of the bill can’t rise above the amount imposed in the first year the exemption was in place, regardless of how much the home’s value climbs. A moving over-65 homeowner carries a proportional ceiling to the new Texas home using Form 50-311.⁹

The disabled person exemption mirrors the over-65 benefit, but you cannot claim both. Bexar CAD requires a current SSA Benefit Verification Letter dated within two years.³

A veteran rated by the VA at 100 percent disability for a service-connected condition, or rated individually unemployable, gets a total exemption: the entire appraised value of the residence homestead is exempt from all taxing entities.¹⁰ A surviving spouse can qualify with the marriage certificate, death certificate, and VA letter confirming the rating at the time of death.³

Homes Owned by a Trust

A home held in trust can still qualify, but the trust has to meet the definition of a “qualifying trust” under Texas Tax Code Section 11.13(j): the trust must identify the applicant as the trustor or beneficiary and give that person the right to use and occupy the property as a principal residence, rent-free, for life or until the trust is revoked.¹¹ When filing, include a copy of the Certificate of Trust or the relevant trust pages, with the signed and notarized portion. Your ID still has to show the property address.³

After You File

The chief appraiser reviews the application for completeness. If more information is needed, the district sends a written request and you have 30 days to respond. The chief appraiser can grant one extension of up to 15 days for good cause; no response means denial.⁵

Approved exemptions appear as a reduction in taxable value on the October tax statement. You generally do not reapply each year. You do have to notify the chief appraiser in writing before May 1 of the following year if your right to the exemption ends, for example because you sold the home or stopped using it as your principal residence.⁵

If the application is denied, you can protest to the Appraisal Review Board using Form 50-132, Notice of Protest. The deadline is generally May 15 or 30 days after the appraisal district delivers its notice, whichever is later.¹²

Don’t Pay a Private Company to File This

Each year Bexar County homeowners get official-looking mailers from private companies offering to file the homestead exemption for a fee, usually $35 or more. The Bexar County Appraisal District has publicly warned that these solicitations are unnecessary: the form is free, filing is free, and no third-party service is required.¹³ If you have a question, call Bexar CAD at 210-224-2432 or stop by 411 North Frio Street.

1
State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 11.13 – Residence Homestead
2
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Property Tax Exemptions
3
Bexar Appraisal District. Required Documents to Submit with Forms 50-114 and 50-135
4
Bexar Appraisal District. Bexar CAD – Property Search
5
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Application for Residence Homestead Exemption
6
Bexar Appraisal District. Homestead Exemption – How to Apply
7
Bexar Appraisal District. Appraisal District Contact and Location Information
8
State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 11.431
9
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Tax Ceiling Certificate for Homeowner Age 65 or Older
10
State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 11.131 – Residence Homestead of 100 Percent or Totally Disabled Veteran
11
Dallas Central Appraisal District. Can I Qualify for a Homestead Exemption if My Property Is in a Trust
12
Texas Law Help. Property Tax Protest and Appeals
13
KENS5. Bexar County’s Chief Appraiser – Don’t Fall for Bogus Homestead Exemption Fee