2023 NJ Property Tax Reimbursement Program: Eligibility, How To Apply

TRENTON, NJ — The New Jersey Department of the Treasury began mailing applications this week for the state's 2023 senior property tax reimbursement program, and eligibility has been significantly expanded this year.

Garden State residents have until Oct. 31 to apply for the Senior Freeze program, which reimburses qualifying senior citizens and disabled residents for increases in property taxes or mobile home park site fees.

The program works by "freezing" an eligible senior citizen taxpayer's property taxes during their first year of eligibility. To qualify for the reimbursement, residents must meet all eligibility requirements each year they apply and continue to apply annually.

A new law passed by the state legislature in 2023 and signed by Gov. Phil Murphy expanded the income limit for this year's program to $150,000, up from $99,735 in 2022. The law also eliminated the requirement that an applicant must be a New Jersey resident for 10 consecutive years.

"With Senior Freeze, senior and disabled residents can choose to stay in the communities they call home without worrying about annual property tax increases," State Treasurer Elizabeth Maher Muoio said in a statement. "This program makes it easier for many seniors living on a fixed income to remain close to their families and friends and continue enjoying all the Garden State has to offer."

To be eligible for the 2023 Senior Freeze program, the taxpayer must:

• Be age 65 or older on Dec. 31, 2022, or receive Social Security disability payments on Dec. 31, 2022, and also on Dec. 31, 2023.
• Own and live in their home or lease a site in a mobile home park for a manufactured or mobile home that they owned since Dec. 31, 2019, or earlier.
• Paid all 2022 property taxes by June 1, 2023, and all 2023 property taxes by June 1, 2024
• Their annual income was $150,000 or less in 2022 and $163,050 or less in 2023. With some exceptions, all income must be taken into account including Social Security, pension, etc.

Applications for the program will be mailed to the last address from which taxpayers filed. Anyone who does not receive an application by March 15 should contact the New Jersey Division of Taxation's Senior Freeze Property Tax Reimbursement Information Line at 800-882-6597.

Residents also have the option to apply online through a direct filing service. Applicants can access the online filing portal at njportal.com/taxation/ptr.

Residents can learn more about available New Jersey property tax relief programs online.