Hawaii Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exemption by County (2026)

In Hawaii, the disabled veteran property tax exemption is a county program, so the VA rating you need, the form you file and the deadline all depend on which island your home is on.1

On Oʻahu, the City and County of Honolulu exempts the home of a veteran who is totally disabled from service injuries. Maui County sets its line at a VA disability rating of 70 percent or higher, and Kauaʻi County covers veterans rated 80 percent to totally disabled.1 None of the three county exemptions (Honolulu, Maui and Kauaʻi) removes every charge on the property tax bill, and the rules for a surviving spouse differ from county to county.1

In This Guide

• Key Takeaways
• Why the Hawaii Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exemption Depends on Your Island
• Hawaii Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exemption by County
• Honolulu: The Totally Disabled Veteran Exemption on Oahu
• Maui County: The Exemption at a 70 Percent Rating
• Kauai County: The Exemption at 80 Percent to Totally Disabled
• Hawaii County (Big Island): Ask the County
• What a Surviving Spouse Can Keep or Claim
• If the Owner Moves Into a Care Home in Honolulu
• Not a Disabled Veteran? Hawaii's Other Property Tax Relief
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Learn More

Why the Hawaii Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exemption Depends on Your Island

In Hawaii, property tax relief is run by the counties, and the disabled veteran exemptions are no exception: each is a county program written into that county's own ordinance, with its own terms.1 That's why a neighbor on another island may describe a different rating threshold or a different deadline from the one you face. Neither of you is wrong. You are simply under different county codes.

So the first question isn't "what does Hawaii offer?" but "which county is my home in?" The City and County of Honolulu, Maui County and Kauaʻi County each tie their disabled veteran exemption to that county's own ordinance and claim form.1 For a home on the Big Island, the Hawaiʻi County section below tells you where to ask.

Hawaii Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exemption by County

The table puts the questions most families arrive with in one row per county. The sections after it explain each row in full, including the conditions that don't fit in a cell.

Honolulu: The Totally Disabled Veteran Exemption on Oahu

Under Revised Ordinances of Honolulu § 8-10.5, a home on Oʻahu is exempt from property taxes, except special assessments, when it is owned and occupied by a veteran who is totally disabled due to injuries received while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces.1 The Honolulu Real Property Assessment Division describes the same benefit on its Totally Disabled Veterans page as an exemption from real property taxes except for the minimum tax.1 Read the two together: a qualifying Honolulu veteran still owes the minimum tax and any special assessments, but not the rest of the property tax on the home.

Who qualifies in Honolulu

Honolulu's ordinance reaches three kinds of ownership. Under Honolulu's ordinance, the home qualifies if it is owned and occupied by the totally disabled veteran, or owned jointly by the veteran and their spouse and occupied by one or both of them.1 The third kind, a home owned and occupied by the veteran's unmarried widow or widower, is covered in the surviving spouse section below.

A few conditions sit on top of that. The Honolulu veteran's total disability must have been incurred while serving in the military, and the exemption applies only while the veteran remains totally disabled, so the county may ask for proof.1 A person may claim the Honolulu exemption on only one home.1

One point trips people up. Honolulu's sources use the phrase "totally disabled" and don't tie it to a particular VA percentage.1 If you aren't sure whether the veteran's rating meets Honolulu's standard, ask the Real Property Assessment Division before you assume either way, and bring the VA rating letter with you.

How to file in Honolulu, and by when

Honolulu veterans file on Form E-8-10.5, together with a copy of a physician's certificate of disability.1 Bring official ID, plus a marriage certificate and the veteran's death certificate if they apply to your claim, and file in person or by mail at a Real Property Assessment Division office.1

The timing is worded two ways, so it's worth reading slowly. The Real Property Assessment Division's page says the Honolulu disabled veteran claim must be filed on or before June 30 for the first payment or December 31 for the second payment.1 Form E-8-10.5 itself says the exemption takes effect beginning with the next tax payment date, either August 20 or February 20, if the claim was filed before that payment date.1 Filing by June 30 or December 31 comes ahead of both of those payment dates, so the safe plan is to file by the earlier June 30 or December 31 date and confirm with the division that your claim is on file.

Once granted, the Honolulu exemption stays in effect as long as the veteran remains totally disabled.1

Maui County: The Exemption at a 70 Percent Rating

Maui County ties its disabled veteran property tax exemption to a specific VA number. Under Maui County Code 3.48.475, "severely disabled" means a disability rating of 70 percent or higher from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.1 A severely disabled veteran, disabled by injuries received while on active duty with the U.S. Armed Forces, may have their Maui County home exempted from all real property taxes except the minimum tax, under Maui County Code 3.48.590.1

So a Maui County veteran rated 70 percent or higher still pays the county's minimum tax, but not the rest of the real property tax on the home.1 The county's Understanding Real Property Taxes guide describes the exemption, and the claim form for a severely disabled veteran is the document you file.

The Maui County deadline for 2027

Maui County's claim form for the 2027 assessment year gives a filing deadline of December 31, 2026.1 On that form, the Maui claimant certifies that they own and occupy the property as their principal residence as of January 1, 2027.1 Maui County's Real Property Assessment Division states on the claim form that it will verify the veteran's service-connected disability with the VA.1 Keep a copy of the veteran's current rating letter handy in case the county calls with questions.

Kauai County: The Exemption at 80 Percent to Totally Disabled

Kauaʻi County Code § 5A-11.6, as reproduced on the county's claim form, exempts from all property taxes other than special assessment a home owned by a disabled veteran who is 80 percent to totally disabled due to injuries received while on duty with the U.S. armed forces.1 The exemption also covers a Kauaʻi home the veteran owns with a spouse, as long as either or both of them occupy it as a home.1

Kauaʻi builds its veteran exemption on top of the ordinary home exemption. Under § 5A-11.6, the Kauaʻi disabled veteran exemption applies to real property for which a home exemption has already been established.1 Kauaʻi's home exemption is claimed on Form P-3 by September 30 preceding the tax year, so if that isn't on file yet, it's the first thing to take care of.2

Three more limits apply on Kauaʻi. Kauaʻi's disabled veteran exemption lasts only as long as the veteran remains 80 percent to totally disabled, it can't be claimed on more than one home per veteran, and it doesn't reach any part of the property used for something other than the veteran's owner-occupied home.1 The ordinance text on the form doesn't say whether a county minimum tax still applies, so don't plan on a bill of zero; ask the county what you will still owe.1

How to file on Kauaʻi

File the county's Claim for Homes of Disabled Veteran Exemption (80% to 100% Disability); the filing deadline printed on the Kauaʻi form is September 30.1

Rated below 80 percent on Kauaʻi

A Kauaʻi veteran rated below 80 percent isn't shut out entirely. The Kauaʻi claim form directs a veteran rated below 80 percent to file instead for the county's exemption for persons with impaired sight or hearing and persons totally disabled, under § 5A-11.8.1 Ask Kauaʻi's Real Property Assessment office what that exemption requires and whether it fits the veteran's situation.

Hawaii County (Big Island): Ask the County

This guide doesn't set out Hawaiʻi County's rating threshold, amount or deadline for a disabled veteran, because we couldn't confirm those terms against a current county document we could cite. If your home is on the Big Island, contact the County of Hawaiʻi's real property tax office directly and ask three things: what VA rating or disability proof the county needs, what the exemption covers, and the filing deadline for the coming tax year. In every Hawaii county, homeowners apply for the county's home exemption with the county real property assessment or tax division, which is also the office to ask about a veteran's exemption.2

What a Surviving Spouse Can Keep or Claim

The surviving spouse rules differ across the three counties this guide covers, and they matter most in the months after a veteran dies, when the paperwork is least welcome.

In Honolulu, the home stays exempt while it is owned and occupied by the veteran's unmarried widow or widower, for as long as they continue to live there and remain unmarried.1 A Honolulu widow or widower may apply even if the veteran never did, as long as they can prove the veteran would have qualified at the time of death.1 Bring the veteran's death certificate and your marriage certificate with the claim.1

On Kauaʻi, after the veteran's death, a surviving spouse, civil union partner or reciprocal beneficiary may continue to receive the exemption, or apply for it based on the veteran's eligibility posthumously, if the veteran was 80 percent to totally disabled at the time of death.1 The Kauaʻi survivor exemption ends when the survivor dies, or if they remarry or enter a new civil union or reciprocal beneficiary relationship.1

For a surviving spouse in Maui County or Hawaiʻi County, ask the county's real property office what, if anything, carries over after the veteran's death. The county documents we rely on here don't address it.

If the Owner Moves Into a Care Home in Honolulu

For many families, the question behind the tax question is what happens when the veteran, or a widowed spouse, can no longer live at home. Honolulu answers it directly. The Honolulu disabled veteran exemption continues if the veteran or qualifying widow or widower moves into a licensed long-term care facility or adult residential care home in Hawaii.1

Two conditions come with that. The owner must designate the adult residential care home or long-term care facility on Form E-8-10.5, and the original home must not be rented, leased or sold while the owner is in the facility.1 If you're arranging a move into care, fill in the facility on the form at the same time, and talk through any plan to rent the house before you sign a lease.

Maui County and Kauaʻi County documents cited here don't say how a move into care affects their exemptions, so ask the county before the move if the home is on one of those islands.

Not a Disabled Veteran? Hawaii's Other Property Tax Relief

If the VA rating doesn't meet your county's line, or the owner isn't a veteran, each Hawaii county also has its own owner-occupant home exemption, and three of the four counties raise it with the owner's age.2 Our guide to Hawaii senior property tax relief walks through those amounts and deadlines county by county.

For the VA benefits that help pay for care itself, see our overview of VA benefits for senior care in Hawaii and our guide to VA Aid and Attendance in Hawaii; the VA's own Aid and Attendance page has the federal details. If you're comparing Hawaii with another state, our national guide to the disabled veteran property tax exemption by state is the place to start.

Learn More

Find personalized help claiming your Hawaii county's disabled veteran property tax exemption at brevy.com.

The information on Brevy.com is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional legal, financial, or medical advice. Rules vary by state and program and change frequently. Always verify with the relevant agency or a qualified professional. Brevy is not a law firm, financial advisor, or healthcare provider.