The Minnesota Certificate of Rent Paid, or CRP, is the form your landlord must give you each year showing how much rent you paid and what portion of it counts as property taxes. You need it to claim the Minnesota renter’s credit on your state income tax return. Landlords have to deliver it by January 31.1Minnesota Department of Revenue. Create a Certificate of Rent Paid (CRP)
Who Should Get a CRP
You should receive a CRP if you rented a home in Minnesota where the property owner paid property taxes. That covers apartments, single-family rentals, townhomes, duplexes, and manufactured home lots. Residents of nursing homes, intermediate care facilities, and adult foster care homes also qualify when the facility pays property taxes on the building.2Minnesota Department of Revenue. Renter’s Credit
You won’t get one if your building is exempt from property taxes. That usually means public housing, some nonprofit-owned buildings, and university dormitories. If part of your rent was covered by a government assistance program like Medical Assistance or Minnesota Housing Support, you can still qualify for the credit, but your refund may be reduced proportionally.3Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 290A – Property Tax Refund
The renter’s credit itself has an income ceiling. For the year covered by the form, your household income must be below $77,570, and the maximum credit is $2,720.2Minnesota Department of Revenue. Renter’s Credit
When It Should Arrive
Your landlord must deliver the CRP to you by January 31 of the year after the rental period, either electronically or as a printed hard copy.1Minnesota Department of Revenue. Create a Certificate of Rent Paid (CRP) If you moved out before December 31, the landlord can hand it over at move-out or mail it to your forwarding address, but the January 31 deadline still applies.
Landlords who fail to issue a CRP face a $100 penalty per certificate. The same penalty applies, or 50 percent of any overstatement (whichever is greater), if a landlord inflates the property-tax figure on the form.4Minnesota Department of Revenue. Certificate of Rent Paid (CRP) Instructions
What to Do If Your Landlord Won’t Provide One
If February arrives and you still don’t have your CRP, start by contacting your landlord or property manager directly. Many delays are administrative, especially at larger management companies. Put the request in writing so you have a record.
If the landlord still won’t respond, contact the Minnesota Department of Revenue. Before you call, gather proof of your rent payments: bank statements, canceled checks, or receipts. For renters in short-term housing like hotels or motels where the operator is unaware of the CRP requirement, the Department offers a Rent Paid Affidavit (RPA) that substitutes for the CRP.4Minnesota Department of Revenue. Certificate of Rent Paid (CRP) Instructions
What the Form Shows
The CRP lists your name, the dates you occupied the unit, the total months rented, and the number of adults living there. It shows the total rent you paid during the calendar year and calculates the portion treated as property taxes.4Minnesota Department of Revenue. Certificate of Rent Paid (CRP) Instructions
“Rent” means what you paid for the right to occupy the unit as your principal residence, whether or not it was spelled out in the lease. It does not include charges for medical services bundled into a rental agreement. If you paid a reduced rent in exchange for caretaker duties, the landlord lists the dollar value of that reduction separately.
Minnesota presumes that 17 percent of gross rent represents the renter’s share of property taxes, and the state’s e-Services system calculates that figure automatically.5Minnesota Department of Revenue. Percentage of Rent Constituting Property Taxes For nursing homes and intermediate care facilities, gross rent is capped at $650 per month for 2025. Adult foster care homes use a $1,010 monthly cap. Both caps are adjusted annually.4Minnesota Department of Revenue. Certificate of Rent Paid (CRP) Instructions
If You Have Roommates
When multiple adults share a rental under a single lease, the landlord splits the total rent evenly across all adults on the CRP, no matter how you actually divide payments between yourselves.4Minnesota Department of Revenue. Certificate of Rent Paid (CRP) Instructions Each adult gets a separate CRP for their equal share. Two people in a $1,200-per-month unit each get a CRP showing $600 per month, even if one of them privately covers more of the rent.
There is no place on the CRP to reflect an uneven split. The only real workaround is separate lease agreements, and most landlords won’t restructure a lease for this purpose.
How to Use the CRP on Your Tax Return
Starting with tax year 2024, the renter’s credit is no longer claimed on Form M1PR. You now report it as a refundable credit on your regular Minnesota income tax return using Schedule M1RENT.6Minnesota Department of Revenue. 2025 Homestead Credit Refund Forms and Instructions Form M1PR now applies only to the homestead credit refund and homestead special refund, not to renters.
If you file by mail, download and complete Form M1, Schedule M1REF, and Schedule M1RENT from the Department of Revenue’s website, and include copies of every CRP you received for the year. Missing CRPs can delay or block the refund.2Minnesota Department of Revenue. Renter’s Credit Most tax preparation software handles all of this: it prompts you to enter CRP data and attaches the right schedule.
Because the credit now travels with your income tax return, it follows your income tax filing deadline rather than the older August M1PR date, and the refund processes on the same timeline as any income tax refund you’re owed.7Minnesota House of Representatives. Renter’s Credit
Manufactured Home Lot Renters
If you rent a lot in a manufactured home park, a separate statute governs your certificate. Minn. Stat. § 290A.19 requires the park owner to make the CRP available to you before February 1 and to send a copy to the commissioner by March 1.8Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 290A.19 – Park Owner to Furnish Rent Certificate The form works the same way: 17 percent of your lot rent counts as your property tax contribution, and you use it to claim the renter’s credit on your income tax return.