If your VA service-connected disability rating is 70% or higher, Illinois exempts the first $250,000 of your home's equalized assessed value (EAV) from property tax. For most homes, that is enough to erase the property tax bill entirely. The Illinois disabled veteran property tax exemption, formally the Standard Homestead Exemption for Veterans with Disabilities (SHEVD), works on a sliding scale, and veterans with lower ratings earn a smaller fixed reduction in taxable value.

This is an Illinois benefit, created under state law and claimed at your local assessment office. It is separate from anything you receive through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

In This Guide

Do You Qualify for the Illinois Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exemption?

Illinois is home to hundreds of thousands of veterans (the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs reports 480,513 for FY26), and this exemption is one of the more valuable benefits the state offers those who served. Eligibility comes down to two things: you're a veteran the VA has given a service-connected disability rating, and the home you're claiming is your primary residence.

The benefit's formal name is the Standard Homestead Exemption for Veterans with Disabilities, usually shortened to SHEVD. It's created under Illinois law at 35 ILCS 200/15-169 and administered locally, not by the VA. What it reduces is the equalized assessed value of your homestead, the figure your local taxing bodies actually apply their tax rate to, rather than paying you cash.

Two conditions sit alongside the rating. The Illinois Department of Revenue requires that you own or lease a single family residence as your primary residence and be liable for payment of the property taxes on it, and the portion of the property used for commercial purposes is excluded; the statute presumes property rented for more than six months to be used for commercial purposes. The statute also defines the qualifying veteran as an Illinois resident who served on active duty or State active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces, the Illinois National Guard, or the U.S. Reserve Forces, who has a service-connected disability certified by the VA, and who receives disability compensation.

How much of a reduction you get depends entirely on your rating. A veteran needs a service-connected disability of at least 30% for any SHEVD benefit at all, and the exemption grows in three steps as the rating rises. The next section lays out those steps.

One point to keep straight from the start. This is the exemption for veterans with a service-connected disability. It's a different program from the age-based property tax relief many Illinois seniors qualify for, which turns on age and income rather than on a VA rating. If you're a senior looking to lower your tax bill but you're not a disabled veteran, our guide to Illinois senior property tax relief covers that track instead.

How Much Is the Illinois Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exemption Worth?

The exemption works by subtracting a set amount from your home's equalized assessed value before the tax is calculated, and the amount rises with your disability rating in three bands.

VA service-connected disability rating What the exemption does
At least 30% but less than 50% Removes $2,500 of EAV
At least 50% but less than 70% Removes $5,000 of EAV
70% or more Exempts the first $250,000 of EAV

Those figures come from the Illinois Department of Revenue and the state statute. Because the exemption lowers the value your local taxing bodies tax rather than the tax bill itself, the actual dollars you keep depend on your combined local tax rate.

The top band is worth spelling out, because it's where the benefit becomes dramatic. At a 70% or higher rating, Illinois's SHEVD exempts the first $250,000 of a home's equalized assessed value. In Illinois, a home's equalized assessed value is generally a fraction of its market value, so for most homes a $250,000 EAV exemption removes the entire assessment and the property tax on that home drops to zero. If your home's EAV happens to run above $250,000, only the portion above that line stays taxable.

One route ignores the sliding scale entirely. For taxable years on or after 2024, if the veteran was a member of the U.S. Armed Forces during World War II, the property is exempt from taxation regardless of the veteran's level of disability.

What About a Surviving Spouse?

The exemption doesn't necessarily end when the veteran dies. Under the statute, the SHEVD benefit carries over to the veteran's surviving spouse as long as that spouse holds legal or beneficial title to the homestead, permanently lives there, and does not remarry.

Those conditions have to hold, and remarriage ends eligibility. But the exemption is not locked to one address: if the surviving spouse sells the property, an exemption not to exceed the amount granted from the most recent ad valorem tax roll may be transferred to a new residence, as long as it is used as the primary residence and the spouse does not remarry. A surviving spouse claims it on the same Form PTAX-342 the veteran would use, and must occupy and hold legal or beneficial title during the assessment year.

You Do Not Need the Veteran to Have Claimed It First

This is the part that costs Illinois widows the most. For taxable year 2023 and thereafter, "surviving spouse" is not limited to the spouse of a veteran who obtained the exemption before death. It has four meanings, and three of them ask nothing of the veteran's own filing history.

  • The spouse of a veteran killed in the line of duty. The statute provides that nothing in the Section requires the veteran to have qualified for or obtained the exemption before death, and the Department of Revenue describes this spouse as eligible for a 100% reduction in EAV on the primary residence.
  • The spouse of a veteran who would have qualified. Where the veteran did not obtain the exemption before death but would have qualified in the taxable year sought had he or she survived, and the spouse has been a resident of Illinois from the time of the veteran's death through that year.
  • The spouse of a veteran whose death was service-connected. Where the spouse is certified by the VA as a recipient of dependency and indemnity compensation before that year's application period expires and remains eligible for it as of January 1 of the taxable year. For this spouse the first $250,000 in EAV of the property is exempt.
  • The spouse of a veteran who did hold the exemption, on the carryover terms above.

If you are an unremarried spouse and your husband or wife never filed, apply anyway, and bring the question to your chief county assessment office rather than answering it yourself.

How to Apply

You claim the exemption yourself; it isn't applied automatically, and it runs through your county rather than the VA.

1
Step 1

Gather your VA rating documentation

You'll want the VA decision letter showing your service-connected disability rating, since the whole benefit is scaled to that number.

2
Step 2

Get Form PTAX-342

The Application for the Standard Homestead Exemption for Veterans with Disabilities is available from your local assessment office.

3
Step 3

File with your local assessment office

Submit the completed application to the chief county assessment office for the county where your home is located, the office that administers the exemption.

4
Step 4

Renew each year, unless you are excepted

Illinois generally requires a veteran with disabilities or a surviving spouse to file for this property tax relief each year, so watch your county's annual deadline. The statute carves out two groups: a veteran who qualifies as a result of World War II service need not reapply, and on and after May 23, 2022 a veteran with a combined service-connected disability rating of 100% who is deemed permanently and totally disabled is no longer required to reapply annually.

One exclusion to settle before you file: a taxpayer who claims an exemption under 35 ILCS 200/15-165, the Veterans with Disabilities Exemption for Specially-Adapted Housing, or under 15-168, the Homestead Exemption for Persons with Disabilities, may not also claim SHEVD. If you already hold one of those, ask your assessment office which is worth more on your home.

If you're not sure which documents you need or how to prove your rating, the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs has Veteran Service Officers, trained and accredited by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, who provide free assistance to veterans and their dependents and survivors, including help applying for federal and state benefits. IDVA runs full-time and part-time offices across the state, and its online VSO locator lists them, but IDVA cautions on that page that "Not all services are offered at each location. Please contact a location nearest you for services offered." If your county isn't listed, IDVA asks you to contact its main office, and it says its Veteran Service Offices remain dedicated to serving veterans' needs remotely, with no benefits that require face to face interaction.

How It Works With Your VA Benefits

A question that comes up often: does claiming this exemption affect your monthly VA disability compensation or your VA pension? It helps to see where the exemption sits. Illinois describes SHEVD as a benefit created and administered under state law, a separate program from the federal VA's disability-compensation and pension benefits. It lowers the property tax you owe your local taxing bodies; it isn't a payment that comes from the VA, which is why veterans commonly hold both.

That distinction matters most if you also receive, or are applying for, VA Aid and Attendance, the monthly pension add-on for veterans who need help with daily activities. For 2026 the VA sets the Aid and Attendance ceiling at up to $29,093 a year for a qualifying veteran and up to $34,488 a year for a veteran with one dependent, which works out to about $2,424 and about $2,874 a month. VA publishes these rates as annual maximums, so a monthly amount is the yearly award divided by 12, and the ceiling is not what lands in your account: VA pays the difference between your income for VA purposes and the limit. Aid and Attendance is a needs-based pension with its own rules, including a 2026 net worth limit of $163,699 and a requirement that you need help with activities of daily living. That limit counts your assets and your annual income together, and your spouse's net worth with them. What doesn't count: your primary residence, one personal vehicle, and basic household goods. The house you live in doesn't push you over the limit, and a mortgage comes off the asset side. The property tax exemption, by contrast, turns entirely on your service-connected rating and your homestead, so a veteran can pursue both on their own tracks.

If you want the full picture of the federal side, our Illinois Aid and Attendance guide covers eligibility, the rates, and how to file, and our overview of VA benefits for senior care in Illinois shows how these pieces fit together.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to be 100% disabled to get any property tax break?

No. You need a service-connected rating of at least 30% for any SHEVD benefit, and the amount grows in three bands from there. A rating of 70% or more is the big one, exempting the first $250,000 of equalized assessed value, but a 30% or 50% rating still removes a fixed amount of value and is worth filing for.

How much money does exempting EAV actually save me?

The exemption comes off your home's equalized assessed value, not off your tax bill directly, so the dollars you keep are the exempted EAV multiplied by your combined local tax rate. Because EAV is only a fraction of a home's market value, a $250,000 EAV exemption at the top band wipes out the entire assessment on most Illinois homes, leaving no property tax to owe on the residence. At the $2,500 and $5,000 bands the savings are smaller but still recur every year the exemption is in place.

Can my spouse keep the exemption if I pass away?

Often, yes, but it does not transfer on its own. An unremarried surviving spouse can carry the exemption on the same homestead as long as they hold title to it and live there, and they claim the transfer by filing their own Form PTAX-342 during the assessment year. Remarriage ends eligibility. Selling does not: on a sale, an exemption not to exceed the amount granted from the most recent ad valorem tax roll may be transferred to a new primary residence, so long as the spouse does not remarry. And a spouse whose veteran never claimed the exemption may still qualify, through the line-of-duty, would-have-qualified, or dependency-and-indemnity-compensation routes set out above.

Do I have to reapply every year?

Generally, yes. Illinois requires a veteran with disabilities or a surviving spouse to file for this relief each year, so don't assume last year's exemption carries forward on its own. Two statutory exceptions are worth asking your assessment office about: a veteran who qualifies as a result of World War II service need not reapply, and on and after May 23, 2022 a veteran with a combined service-connected disability rating of 100% who is deemed permanently and totally disabled is no longer required to reapply annually. Either way, check your county's annual deadline before assuming your paperwork is settled.

What if I move into a nursing home or a VA facility?

The exemption does not automatically end. If the person awarded it later becomes a resident of a facility licensed under the Nursing Home Care Act, or a facility operated by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the exemption continues so long as the residence is still occupied by the qualifying person's spouse, or remains unoccupied but is still owned by the person who qualified. One timing rule to expect: if the qualifying person does not occupy the residence as of January 1 of the taxable year, the exemption is prorated on a monthly basis beginning with the first complete month of occupancy. Tell your chief county assessment office what has changed rather than letting the exemption lapse on an assumption.

Will claiming it reduce my VA compensation or Aid and Attendance?

The SHEVD exemption is a separate program created and administered under Illinois law, distinct from the VA's disability-compensation and pension benefits. It reduces your local property tax rather than any payment from the VA. If your VA pension is needs-based and you want certainty about your own case, confirm with an accredited Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs service officer.

Learn More

VA BenefitsDisabled Veteran Property Tax Exemptions by StateMost states fully or partially exempt a service-connected disabled veteran's home from property tax. See how the three models work and find your state. VA BenefitsVA Aid and Attendance in IllinoisVA Aid and Attendance in Illinois for 2026: who qualifies, monthly rates up to $2,874, how to apply, and free filing help from IDVA and county VACs. VA BenefitsVA Benefits You Can Use for Senior Care in IllinoisIllinois veterans can access VA home care, Aid and Attendance pension, the five state veterans homes, and community care. See which fits, and how to apply. FinancialIllinois Senior Property Tax ReliefHow Illinois homeowners 65 and older cut property taxes: the senior homestead exemption, the assessment freeze, and the tax deferral. Forms and limits. VA BenefitsAid and Attendance for Nursing Home Care in IllinoisVA Aid and Attendance can help pay for a nursing home in Illinois. See the 2026 rates, who qualifies, the $90/month Medicaid cap, and how to apply.

Find personalized help claiming the Illinois 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.

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