If you are an Arkansas Veteran rated 100% permanent and total for service-connected disability, or you receive VA special monthly compensation for loss or loss of use of one or more limbs or total blindness in one or both eyes, Arkansas takes your property tax bill to zero. Not just the house: the exemption covers your homestead plus up to 40 acres AND your non-business personal property, including the vehicles Arkansas taxes every year. And as of 2025, you file the paperwork once, not annually.
What it is
The exemption comes from Arkansas Code Section 26-3-306. The operative sentence, exactly as written: "A disabled veteran who has been awarded special monthly compensation by the Department of Veterans Affairs for the loss of, or the loss of use of, one (1) or more limbs, for total blindness in one (1) or both eyes, or for service-connected one hundred percent (100%) total and permanent disability shall be exempt from payment of all state taxes on the homestead and personal property owned by the disabled veteran."
The statute defines both key terms:
- Homestead means the dwelling you occupy as your principal residence plus up to 40 acres of contiguous land, as long as that land is not used for a commercial purpose.
- Personal property means "only those items of tangible personal property used for other than a commercial or business purpose."
That second definition matters, because Arkansas counties assess an annual personal property tax on vehicles. Your personal cars and other non-business tangible property come off the tax rolls along with the house; county collectors such as Pulaski County confirm the exemption covers both real estate and personal property taxes.
What it does not cover, per the county collectors who administer it: rental property, business or commercial property, special improvement district assessments, city liens, sanitation fees, timber land, and land-only parcels.
One statutory trade-off: you cannot also take the Amendment 79 homestead credit under Section 26-26-1118 or, per the counties, the over-65 assessment freeze. Since this exemption zeroes out the whole bill, the trade always works in your favor.
What it's worth
Our estimate for the homestead piece:
$198,000 median Arkansas home value x 0.64% effective property tax rate = about $1,267 per year eliminated.
The honest math. That $1,267 is a statewide median estimate, not your number. Millage rates are set locally, and the personal property tax you stop paying on your vehicles stacks on top. Your county collector can tell you what your parcel and vehicles were billed last year; that full amount is what this is worth, every year.
Mid-year moves are handled fairly: sell and the exemption prorates to the date of sale, so you owe nothing for the part of the year the home was your homestead; same in reverse when buying. Under a 2023 amendment, the exemption applies from the date eligibility is established regardless of the lien date and follows you to any county in the state.
Who qualifies (and who doesn't)
You must be a citizen and resident of Arkansas, own the property, and fit one of the statute's three paths:
- Service-connected 100% total and permanent disability. This is the path most Veterans use. Your VA letter must show the rating is total AND permanent.
- Loss of, or loss of use of, one or more limbs, with special monthly compensation awarded by the VA for it.
- Total blindness in one or both eyes, with special monthly compensation awarded by the VA for it.
A note on TDIU: county collectors like Pulaski County list "unemployable" Veterans as qualifying when the rating is permanent and total. If your Summary of Benefits letter does not show your total and permanent date, Pulaski County asks for the Rating Decision that lists it. Because everything rides on your VA compensation status, you also need the discharge status that qualifies you for VA compensation in the first place.
Surviving spouses and children get real, statutory protection. On the Veteran's death, the surviving spouse and minor dependent children stay exempt on the homestead and personal property they own. It also extends to the spouse and minor children of a service member killed within the scope of military duties or missing in action, and of a Veteran who died from service-connected causes, certified by the VA and tied to dependency and indemnity compensation entitlement. The spouse keeps the exemption while unmarried, and here is the part most states do not offer: if the spouse remarries and that later marriage ends, the statute reinstates the exemption. Minor children are covered during their minority.
Who doesn't qualify: Veterans rated below 100% (there are no partial tiers), Veterans rated 100% without the permanent designation and without a qualifying SMC award, non-residents, and rental, business, or business-use property.
Do not stretch the facts. A false claim is a violation carrying a fine of $100 to $1,000.
How to claim it
The claim goes to your county collector (in some counties, like Pulaski, the treasurer's office handles it). No state-level application exists.
- Get your VA Summary of Benefits letter. The VA mails it each January; you can also download it from VA.gov or call 800-827-1000. It must verify the SMC award or the service-connected 100% total and permanent disability.
- Add proof of your permanent and total date if the letter lacks it. Pulaski County asks for the Rating Decision that lists the date; other counties may too.
- Submit to your county collector's office. Pulaski County, for example, accepts the documents by mail or fax; confirm your own county's preferred method on its collector page. Make sure you are listed on the deed and on your personal property assessment; the exemption attaches to property the qualifying person owns.
- Surviving spouses and minor children add an affidavit. The statute requires a VA letter verifying the Veteran's qualifying status at death (or, for line-of-duty deaths and MIA cases, VA certification tied to dependency and indemnity compensation) plus a signed affidavit stating your relationship. Counties provide the form.
- After that, it is one and done. Act 876 of 2025 amended the statute so the VA letter only has to be submitted once to establish eligibility, as county collectors now explain. In exchange, you must notify the collector if your status changes so you no longer qualify, or if the property's description, ownership, use, or occupancy changes; if you move, submit a new letter in the new county.
Some county websites still describe the old annual routine, like Saline County's page saying to turn the letter in annually by October 15. The one-time rule is state law now, but if your county asks for a fresh letter, sending one costs nothing. Confirm the procedure with your county collector or the Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs.
Deadlines
Arkansas property taxes are due October 15 each year, so get your letter in well before your bill is issued. Two timing rules with teeth:
- No back refunds. County collectors treat property taxes as voluntarily paid; if you were eligible in past years but never submitted your letter, those payments generally cannot be refunded.
- Report changes promptly. Under Act 876 of 2025, a collector who finds an erroneous exemption must remove it and may claw back up to three years of taxes plus penalties, interest, and costs.
Related benefits
See how the same rating plays elsewhere:
- Alabama's disabled Veteran homestead exemption also zeroes out the homestead at 100% P&T, but it does not touch personal property the way Arkansas does.
- Alabama's surviving spouse property tax exemption shows how narrow spouse continuation can be elsewhere; Arkansas wrote its spouse protection, including reinstatement after a later marriage ends, directly into the statute.
- Alaska's disabled Veteran property tax exemption starts at a 50% rating but the mandatory exemption covers only the first $150,000 of assessed value; Arkansas has no value cap at all.
Inside the app, the state benefits calculator prices out every Arkansas benefit tied to your rating, not just this one.
What to do next
Arkansas stacks more on a 100% rating, and most Veterans are collecting only a fraction of what they qualify for.
Run the state benefits calculator to see your Arkansas total, or start your free benefits scan and we will check you against over 4,000 federal and state benefits, each with a dollar value and an official source.