Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exemption in Wyoming (2026)

Last reviewed August 26, 2026. Every figure, form and deadline on this page is re-checked against the state’s own government sources once a quarter, and the date above is updated when we do it.

Wyoming’s veteran property tax exemption reduces the assessed value of your home by $6,000 if you are a disabled veteran with a compensable service-connected disability, or an honorably discharged veteran of a qualifying war era or campaign. It is not tied to a specific disability percentage. You claim it with your county assessor by the fourth Monday in May.

You will still see $3,000 quoted for this exemption. That was the amount for nearly two decades, and it changed for tax year 2025. Further down I show you exactly which sources still have the old number.

How much is the Wyoming exemption worth?

Qualifying category	Exemption
Disabled veteran with any compensable VA service-connected disability rating, or honorably discharged WWII/Korea/Vietnam veteran, or veteran with a qualifying expeditionary or campaign medal	$6,000 of assessed value
Unmarried surviving spouse (or surviving parents, if no spouse) of a qualifying veteran	$6,000 of assessed value

This is not a percentage-tiered benefit like some states run. Wyoming does not ask what your rating is once it is compensable, and it does not require 100 percent or individual unemployability. A veteran rated 10 percent gets the same $6,000 reduction as a veteran rated 100 percent, as long as the disability is service-connected and compensable.

$6,000 is knocked off assessed value, not market value. Wyoming assesses residential property at 9.5 percent of fair market value, so $6,000 of assessed value corresponds to roughly $63,000 of market value, an unusually generous multiplier compared to states that assess closer to full value. What that is worth in actual dollars depends on your county’s mill levy. The Fremont County Assessor estimates about $175 a year off a principal residence. Other counties, such as Washakie and Laramie, have published a similar estimate around $213 to $400 depending on local rates. Ask your county assessor for the number in your tax district.

Why you will still see $3,000 quoted

From 2007 until tax year 2024, the exemption was capped at $3,000 of assessed value. Senate File 89, passed in the 2024 budget session, doubled it to $6,000 starting with tax year 2025. The increase is now in the statute and on the Department of Revenue’s own tax relief page. But several county pages, and the state’s own 2021 Wyoming Military Department veterans benefit booklet, have not been updated and still print the old $3,000 number. If you are reading anything dated 2024 or earlier, or a page that has not been refreshed since, assume it is stale and check the current amount with your county assessor.

A full exemption for 100 percent disabled veterans almost happened in 2026

House Bill 68 would have expanded the exemption to a full exemption of the entire assessed value of the primary residence, plus up to 10 acres, for veterans certified as 100 percent permanently and totally disabled, effective for tax assessed on and after January 1, 2027. It passed the Wyoming House 58 to 1 and was reported out of the House Revenue Committee 9 to 0, but the House Committee of the Whole did not take it up before the session’s cutoff, and it did not advance further. If it comes back and passes in a future session, 100 percent P&T veterans in Wyoming would move into the same class as states like Texas that exempt the full home. Until then, the flat $6,000 reduction is what the law provides.

Who qualifies in Wyoming?

To claim the Wyoming veterans’ property tax exemption you need to meet the residency rule and one of the qualifying categories below.

• Be a bona fide Wyoming resident for at least three consecutive years immediately before you claim the exemption.
• Meet one of these categories:
  • A disabled veteran with a compensable service-connected disability certified by the VA or a branch of the U.S. armed forces, at any percentage; or
  • An honorably discharged veteran of World War II (December 7, 1941 to December 31, 1946), the Korean War emergency (June 27, 1950 to January 31, 1955), or the Vietnam War emergency (February 28, 1961 to May 7, 1975); or
  • An honorably discharged veteran awarded the armed forces expeditionary medal or another authorized service or campaign medal for U.S. service in an armed conflict in a foreign country.

The exemption is claimed against your principal residence or against a vehicle registration fee, but not both in the same way, and it can only be claimed in one county in a given year. It has no income test.

Surviving spouses and surviving parents

An unmarried surviving spouse of a qualifying veteran, or of someone who died while serving honorably during a qualifying war or period, keeps the same $6,000 exemption during widowhood. If there is no surviving spouse, surviving parents can qualify, and divorced parents living apart can each claim it separately. Talk to your county assessor about the documentation they want for a spousal or parental claim.

No 100 percent requirement

Unlike states that reserve their best property tax benefit for a 100 percent or individual unemployability rating, Wyoming’s statute only requires the disability to be compensable, meaning the VA is paying you something for it. There is no partial-tier schedule to work through here, just one flat amount for every compensable rating.

Can the exemption be used before closing?

In Wyoming, generally no, not for the year you buy. Wyoming’s property tax year runs on the calendar year, commencing with the real property assessment date of January 1. Claims are then filed annually with the county assessor by the fourth Monday in May. A home you buy partway through the year typically was not assessed to you as of that January 1, so the practical result county assessors describe, for example Weston County’s own guidance, is that eligible property must be owned by the veteran as of January 1 of the tax year the exemption is claimed for.

Four states put a pre-purchase determination in the statute. Wyoming is not one of them

State rule. Four states let a qualifying veteran get something in writing from the taxing authority before they own the home:

• Virginia: file the normal exemption paperwork plus documentation of the purchase agreement and the commissioner of the revenue must process it and send an approval or denial letter, with the exemption amount, within 20 business days. Va. Code § 58.1-3219.6(B). The exemption itself takes effect only after you become the owner.
• Maryland: you may apply for a specific dwelling you intend to purchase, and the Department of Assessments and Taxation must send a preliminary approval or denial, with the amount, within 15 business days. Md. Code, Tax-Property § 7-208(d)(5). No second application is needed once you own it.
• Utah: a qualifying disabled veteran claimant may apply before owning the residence with a real estate purchase contract, filed in the county where the home sits, and the county must send a receipt with preliminary approval or denial and the calculated amount within 15 business days. Utah Code § 59-2a-502(5).
• Alabama: for closings on or after October 1, 2026, the tax assessing official issues a tentative certificate of permanent and total disability before purchase, within 20 days, and the statute says a settlement agent or loan closing officer may not consider the homestead ad valorem taxes when calculating debt-to-income once you hand over that certificate. Ala. Code § 40-9-21.3.

One correction worth having, because it gets repeated a lot: outside of Alabama these laws bind the county or the state tax office, not your lender. They force the taxing authority to answer you in writing before closing. They do not order a lender to waive or exclude the tax. Alabama is the only one of the four that reaches into the loan file itself. North Carolina has a bill that would add a prequalification process, House Bill 94, which passed the House 112 to 0 in May 2025 and has sat in Senate Rules since. It is not law, so do not plan around it.

In Wyoming it is a lender decision, so shop it

Lender overlay and market practice. There is no Wyoming statute telling the taxing authority to pre-approve you before you own the home, so whether this benefit helps you qualify comes down to lender policy. Here is what that looks like in practice, from lender guidance we collected directly in August 2026:

• Some lenders will use the reduced tax figure before closing, and some will not. One wholesale lender told us plainly it will consider a veteran real estate tax exemption and a reduced property tax number in the qualifying payment, as long as underwriting gets the local exemption rules and proof you meet them. If the documentation is short, underwriting uses the full tax amount instead. Another wholesaler checks it state by state and county by county on every single closing. If your lender says no, that is not the final answer on the benefit. It is that lender’s answer. Ask another one.
• Every lender will require proof of eligibility if the lower tax is doing work in your file. If the reduced tax is what lowers your debt ratio or raises your residual income, expect to document it: your VA rating decision or award letter showing the qualifying disability, the taxing authority’s own published exemption rules, and usually the completed exemption application. One lender’s VA guide requires proof of 100 percent disability from VA plus a copy of the completed county application for property tax exemption, and where the application has to be notarized it takes an unsigned copy up front and conditions it to be signed at closing.

Lender overlays apply everywhere. State permission is not lender permission. One large investor allows the anticipated reduced tax for qualifying only for primary residences in California, Florida, Maryland, Texas, Utah and Virginia, and only with proof the veteran applied to the taxing authority before the note date. Wyoming is not on that list.

Practically, ask your loan officer two questions before you write an offer: will you use a reduced tax figure to qualify me, and will you waive the tax escrow. Different lenders give different answers on the same file, and that is normal, not a mistake.

What we can do instead: waive the escrow

If the exemption cannot be counted yet, the fallback is to not escrow the taxes at all, so your monthly housing expense is not carrying twelve months of a tax bill that is about to shrink. VA does not require escrows, so this is a lender and investor decision, and many will allow it on a strong file. There are lenders that will waive the tax escrow on a VA loan even when the property taxes have not been waived yet, so this is a real option and not a rare favor. Some will waive it with no restrictions at all, others want the eligibility proof and the correct paperwork in the file first. Waiving escrow does not require the taxing authority to approve anything, which is why it is usually the easier ask of the two. Understand the tradeoff: with no escrow account, you pay the taxing authority directly and you are on your own for those tax bills until the exemption is actually approved, and approval can take a while. Budget for it and pay the bill on time; a delinquent tax bill on a home you just bought is an expensive way to save a few dollars of monthly payment.

One more VA rule to know, because it runs the other way. On estimating taxes, Chapter 4 says “If taxes are expected to increase, use the increased amount.” There is no matching VA instruction that lets an underwriter write down your taxes, which is why the reduction is always a lender option and never a VA entitlement. The Chapter 4 text is here if you want to read it.

Plan for the gap between closing and approval

These applications take a while to process, and the taxing authority’s calendar does not wait for your loan. A tax bill can come due between your closing date and the day your exemption is approved, and you are the owner, so that bill is yours. That can include taxes attributable to the period the prior owner held the home. One lender’s VA guide makes it explicit and requires a signed letter of explanation from the veteran borrower stating they are solely responsible for the property taxes owed for the prior owner. Keep the money set aside and do not assume the first bill will be reduced, especially if you waived escrow and Wyoming is billing you directly.

How to apply in Wyoming, step by step

1. Get the Veterans Property Tax Exemption application from your county assessor’s office, or from the Wyoming Department of Revenue’s Tax Relief page, under the Veterans section.
2. Gather your proof. For the disability category, you need your VA award letter or other VA/branch-certified documentation showing a compensable service-connected disability. For the war-era categories, bring your discharge document, such as DD Form 214, DD Form 214N, or the older WD AGO Form 53-55, showing honorable service in the qualifying period. For the medal category, your discharge document needs to show the qualifying expeditionary or campaign medal.
3. File with your county assessor, not the state. Use the Wyoming Department of Revenue’s statewide county assessor contact directory to find the office, phone number and address for your county.
4. File every year by the fourth Monday in May. This is not a one-time filing. Some counties, such as Fremont County, allow a phone signature for renewal on a principal residence once you have filed the first time; ask your assessor what they accept.
5. Choose real property or a vehicle and file in one county only. If you have already claimed the exemption on your home, you cannot also claim it on a vehicle registration the same year, and you cannot split it across two counties.

Filing late is not always fatal. A claimant who is honorably discharged and files after the fourth Monday in May is still entitled to the exemption for that tax year, in addition to the exemption for the following tax year, as long as the follow-up claim is filed on or before the fourth Monday in May of the next year.

Can you get a refund of prior year taxes?

Wyoming’s veterans exemption is a going-forward reduction in assessed value applied to a bill you have not paid yet, administered by the county assessor before your tax bill is calculated. There is no statutory back-year refund process built into W.S. 39-13-105 the way some states allow a late claim to be credited or refunded against a bill already issued.

What the statute does allow is a limited grace period on timing: if you are honorably discharged and file your claim after the fourth Monday in May, you still get that tax year’s exemption, and you also get the following tax year’s exemption if you file the follow-up claim by the next year’s fourth Monday in May deadline. Miss both windows and you are simply not on the roll for those years; there is no statutory mechanism here to go back further and recover taxes you already paid at full assessed value. Confirm current practice with your county assessor and treasurer, since administration is local.

Other Wyoming programs for disabled veterans

The property tax exemption is not the only Wyoming benefit for veterans. These are separate programs with their own eligibility rules.

• Disabled Veteran license plates (state). A veteran with a service-connected disability rating of 50 percent or more can get Disabled Veteran plates for a passenger car, pickup, motorcycle or multipurpose vehicle, exempt from the standard registration fee for one vehicle a year, under W.S. 31-2-215 and 31-3-101(b)(xv). Apply through your county treasurer with form MV-100B and your VA rating letter. Wyoming Department of Transportation, Disabled Vet plates.
• Property Tax Refund Program (state, not veteran-specific). A separate, income-tested refund of up to half the median residential property tax bill, or 75 percent of your bill, whichever is less, open to any eligible Wyoming homeowner regardless of veteran status. Different deadline (first Monday in June) and different office (county treasurer or the Department of Revenue). You cannot claim this refund and the veterans exemption using the same tax dollars for the same year, so check with your county before applying for both. Wyoming Dept. of Revenue, Tax Relief page.
• Property tax deferral (county option). Some counties allow up to half of your property taxes to be deferred rather than paid, with interest accruing on the deferred amount, under W.S. 39-13-107(b)(iii). County commissioners administer this locally, so ask your county assessor whether your county runs it.
• State income tax. Wyoming has no state income tax, so there is no state tax return on which VA disability compensation, military retirement pay, or this property tax exemption would ever come into play.
• Wyoming Veterans Commission and county veterans service officers. The Wyoming Veterans Commission helps veterans document eligibility, including sorting out qualifying medals or time periods on a DD Form 214, and can point you to your county’s veterans service officer for claims help and emergency assistance referrals. Call 800-833-5987.

Wyoming disabled veteran property tax FAQs

How much is Wyoming’s disabled veteran property tax exemption worth?

It reduces the assessed value of your home by $6,000 a year. Assessed value in Wyoming is 9.5 percent of fair market value for residential property, so $6,000 of assessed value works out to roughly $63,000 knocked off what your home is taxed on. County assessors report the actual savings run around $175 to $400 a year depending on the local mill levy.

Why do some sources say the exemption is $3,000?

Because that was the amount from 2007 until tax year 2024. Senate File 89 doubled it to $6,000 starting with tax year 2025. Some county pages and the state’s own 2021 veterans benefit booklet still print the old $3,000 figure. If you see $3,000 quoted anywhere in 2026, it is out of date.

Do I need a 100 percent VA disability rating to get Wyoming’s exemption?

No. Wyoming’s statute qualifies a disabled veteran with any compensable service-connected disability rating certified by the VA. There is no percentage tier and no requirement to be rated 100 percent or individually unemployable. The exemption is the same flat $6,000 whatever your rating is, as long as it is compensable.

Does Wyoming have a full exemption for 100 percent disabled veterans?

Not yet. House Bill 68 in the 2026 session would have given veterans certified as 100 percent permanently and totally disabled a full exemption on their primary residence and up to 10 acres, starting with tax year 2027. It passed the House 58 to 1 but was not taken up by the Committee of the Whole and did not become law this session.

Can I use a war-service exemption instead of the disability one?

Yes, if you qualify. Wyoming’s veterans exemption also covers honorably discharged veterans of World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and any veteran awarded a qualifying armed forces expeditionary or campaign medal. You only need to meet one category, disability is not the only path in.

Can a surviving spouse keep the Wyoming exemption?

Yes, an unmarried surviving spouse of a veteran who qualified, or who died while serving honorably, can claim the same $6,000 exemption. Surviving parents can also qualify if there is no surviving spouse. Confirm the paperwork your county assessor wants.

Can I use the exemption on a home I am buying right now?

Not for the current tax year unless you already own and occupy it. Wyoming’s property tax year runs on the real property assessment date of January 1, and the exemption must be claimed with your county assessor by the fourth Monday in May. Buy mid-year and the earliest you can typically claim it is the following tax year.

Where to go next

• Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exemption Guide, every state’s exemption, form and deadline in one directory
• The complete guide to VA home loans
• Funding Fee Waivers and Refunds Guide, the fee is waived outright at a 10 percent rating or higher, and can be refunded if you already paid it
• Property tax discounts for veterans on VA disability, the national overview
• VA loan closing costs explained
• Wyoming Department of Revenue, veterans and property tax relief programs
• Wyoming Statutes, Title 39 (PDF download), Section 39-13-105 covers the veterans exemption
• Directory of all Wyoming county assessors