Veteran Exemptions

Additional exemptions available to qualifying veterans
and the unremarried spouse of a qualified veteran

Veterans who qualify for the homestead exemption may also qualify for additional exemptions due to disability or as a result of qualifying* deployment in the prior year.

Disabled Veteran Exemptions:

Veterans having a service connected disability rating from 10% to 99% are eligible for a $5,000 exemption. This reduces your assessed value by $5,000 in addition to the (up to $50,000) homestead exemption reduction.

Veterans having a service connected total and permanent disability rating of 100% are entitled to be wholly exempt from real estate taxes.

To qualify for a veteran disability exemption you must provide proof of service connected disability, the percentage of disability and proof the disability is deemed total and permanent. If you do not already have a letter from the Veterans Administration stating the above, you may contact the Lee County Veterans Services office, located at 2440 Thompson St, Ft Myers, Fl, 239-533-8381 for assistance.

The unremarried surviving spouse of a veteran may qualify for the additional disability exemptions. Surviving spouse must be a Florida resident and apply for and qualify for homestead exemption – proof of continuous marriage may be required. Other qualifiers may apply – contact our office for more information, email exemptions@leepa.org.

The unremarried surviving spouse of a veteran who dies from service connected causes while on active duty may qualify if the veteran was a permanent resident of Florida on January 1 of the year in which the veteran died. Proof of service connected/active duty is required. Additional qualifiers may apply – Contact our office for more information, email exemptions@leepa.org. Please refer to Florida Statute 196.081 for specific information related to the surviving spouse entitlements.

To apply for a Homestead Tax Discount for veterans age 65 and older with a combat-related disability, complete the application form DR-501DV and provide the required documentation to our office.

Exemption for deployed service members

Veterans deployed in the prior year outside the continental United States, Alaska or Hawaii in support operations designated by the Florida legislature are eligible for additional exemption based on the term of deployment in the prior year.

The 2012 Legislature enacted Chapter 2012-193, Laws of Florida(CS/HB7097), effective April 27, 2012. Section 24 amends section 196.173, Florida Statutes, designating two new military operations for which an exemption is available and providing an ending date for an existing operation.

*The operations currently designated by the FL Legislature are as follows:

Operation Noble Eagle, which began on September 15, 2001
Operation Enduring Freedom, which began on Oct.7, 2001
Operation Iraqi Freedom, which began on March 19, 2003 and ended on August 31, 2010
Operation New Dawn, which began on September 1, 2010 and ended on December 15, 2011
Operation Odyssey Dawn, which began on March 19, 2011, and ended on October 31, 2011

The designated operations can change – please file an application and we will process it based on the latest information provided to the Legislature by the Department of Military Affairs.

To qualify for an additional disability exemption, please provide proof of percentage of disability or proof of 100% total and permanent disability from the VA.

To qualify for the additional exemption related to prior year deployment, complete the application DOR 501M and provide proof of deployment stating the name of the military operation and dates of deployment. You can access the application on our website – Form DOR 501M or contact our office for more information. Please refer to Florida Statute 2012 – 196.173.