Tax year 2025. These are DOR's numbers for 2025 rent and property taxes, the claim you file in 2026 (or later, up to April 15, 2030). DOR publishes the 2026 forms and tables around the start of 2027.(DOR Schedule H instructions)
Two Credits, Compared
| Homestead credit | School property tax credit | |
|---|---|---|
| Who | Renters and owners with household income under $24,680(DOR) | Anyone who paid rent on their main home or property tax on their home(Form 1 instructions) |
| Most you can get | $1,168(DOR) | $300, or $150 if married filing separately(Form 1 instructions) |
| Paid if you owe no tax? | Yes. You can file it on its own.(Schedule H instructions) | No. It can lower your tax to zero, not below.(Form 1) |
| Form | Schedule H or H-EZ, with a rent certificate or tax bill | Form 1, line 16 |
| Rent that counts | 20% of rent with heat included, 25% without(Schedule H) | Rent paid in 2025, from DOR's table, heat included or not(Form 1 instructions) |
You can claim both in the same year.(Form 1 instructions)
Who Qualifies for the Homestead Credit
For tax year 2025, all of these have to be true:(DOR Fact Sheet 1116)
- You lived in and owned or rented a Wisconsin home that's subject to property taxes during 2025.
- You were a legal Wisconsin resident all year, and 18 or older on December 31, 2025.
- Your household income was under $24,680.
- You or your spouse had earned income, were disabled, or were 62 or older at the end of the year. Earned income means wages, tips and self-employment earnings. Unemployment doesn't count.(Schedule H instructions)
- Nobody can claim you as a dependent on their federal return, unless you're 62 or older.
You can't claim it if:(DOR Fact Sheet 1116)
- You lived all year in housing that's exempt from property taxes. Public housing run by a housing authority that makes payments in place of taxes still counts, so check with the manager.
- You'll claim the farmland preservation credit, the veterans and surviving spouses property tax credit, or the retirement income subtraction for 2025.
- You live in a nursing home and receive Title XIX medical assistance.
- You received W2 payments, or county relief of $400 or more, in all 12 months. For fewer months, your rent and taxes are cut by one-twelfth for each month.
- Another member of your household already filed a 2025 claim.(Schedule H instructions)
How the Credit Is Figured
Schedule H compares your rent or property tax with your household income, using two tables DOR prints in the instructions.(Schedule H instructions, pp. 25–26)
- Household income (line 12c). Taxable and nontaxable income for you and a spouse you live with, minus $500 for each dependent who lived with you more than six months.(DOR)(Schedule H instructions)
- Taxes and rent (lines 13 to 15). Owners use net 2025 property taxes, after the lottery credit and without special assessments or charges. Renters use 20% of rent if heat was included, 25% if not.(Schedule H)
- The cap (line 16). Only the first $1,460 of taxes and rent counts.
- The income amount (line 17). Table A gives an amount based on household income. It's $0 below $8,060 and climbs to $1,460 at $24,680.
- The credit (lines 18 and 19). Subtract line 17 from line 16. Table B turns the result into your credit, about 80% of it, up to $1,168.
An example, worked through DOR's tables: a single renter with $15,000 of household income paid $10,800 rent in 2025, heat included. 20% of the rent is $2,160, capped at $1,460. Table A gives $611 for that income, which leaves $849. Table B turns $849 into a homestead credit of $676. The same rent is worth $260 on the school property tax credit.
If you received W2 payments or county relief in some months, DOR's own example: $6,000 of rent without heat counts as $1,500, capped at $1,460. With 4 months of W2, that's $122 a month for the 8 other months, or $976.(DOR Publication 127)
Renters: the Rent Certificate
- Renters attach a rent certificate for each place they lived in 2025. You fill in your part, give it to your landlord to complete and sign, then add your Social Security number when it comes back. Don't sign it yourself.(DOR rent certificate)
- If your landlord won't sign, fill in the landlord section yourself, check the box, and attach canceled checks or money order receipts. Rent you can't verify isn't allowed.(DOR rent certificate)
- Count only rent you paid. Rental assistance paid for you, security deposits and late fees don't count.(Schedule H instructions)(DOR rent certificate)
- Roommates other than your spouse and minor children: if you didn't split costs evenly, fill in the Shared Living Expenses Schedule on page 2 of the certificate. Otherwise the rent is divided by the number of occupants.(Schedule H instructions)
- Moved during the year? Attach a certificate for each place and a list of where you lived and when. You can't claim more than 12 months.(Schedule H instructions)
Help with rent itself is in affordable housing and rent help in Dane County. For lease rules, see renting in Wisconsin.
Homeowners
- Use the net 2025 property tax on your home (the bill payable in 2026), whether or not you've paid it. Net means after state aids, credits and the lottery credit, and without special assessments, charges or delinquent interest.(Schedule H instructions) Your tax bill, line by line shows where those numbers are.
- Attach a copy of the bill or a printout from the treasurer. A mortgage statement or canceled check won't do.(Schedule H instructions)
- If your bill shows no lottery and gaming credit, subtract it if you got it separately, or attach a note saying you didn't.(Schedule H instructions)
- Only the part you live in counts. DOR's example: live in one of three equal units of a triplex with $3,000 of taxes, and you claim $1,000.(Schedule H instructions)
- Only the home and up to one acre count, unless it's a farm. Bigger lots go on Schedule H, not H-EZ.(Schedule H instructions)
School Property Tax Credit
This one goes on your Wisconsin income tax return (Form 1, line 16), not Schedule H. There's no income limit, and you can take it whether or not you claim the homestead credit.(Form 1 instructions)
- Renters use the rent they paid in 2025 for their main home and look it up in DOR's table, in the heat-included or heat-not-included column. It reaches $300 at $12,500 of rent with heat included, and at $10,000 without heat.(Form 1 instructions)
- Owners use the property tax they paid in 2025 on their home. It reaches $300 at $2,500 of tax.(Form 1 instructions)
- Rent for tax-exempt housing doesn't count, for example a university dorm, nonprofit senior housing or public housing (unless the housing authority pays in place of taxes). Subtract the value of meals or services included in rent.(Form 1 instructions)
- Roommates each use their own share. DOR's example: three people paying $6,000 split evenly each claim on $2,000.(Form 1 instructions)
- Renter plus owner credits together can't top $300, or $150 if married filing separately or as head of household.(Form 1 instructions)
- It's nonrefundable: it can cut your tax to zero but isn't paid out beyond that.(Form 1)
How and When to File
- Which form. Schedule H-EZ if your income is only wages, interest, dividends, unemployment, pensions, Social Security, support payments, public assistance and gambling winnings, your home was for personal use only on an acre or less, and you didn't marry, divorce or sell your home. Everyone else uses Schedule H.(DOR)
- Online. DOR's free WisTax system takes most claims, with some exceptions such as more than four rent certificates or a divorce during the year.(Schedule H instructions)
- With or without a tax return. File it with Form 1 if you're filing one. If you don't have to file, send Schedule H or H-EZ by itself.(Schedule H instructions)
- Let DOR do the math. Leave the credit lines blank and DOR will compute the credit.(Schedule H instructions)
- Deadline. The 2025 claim is due April 15, 2030 for most people. Earlier years run on the same four-year clock: the 2024 claim is due April 15, 2029.(Schedule H instructions)(DOR common questions)
- Free help. IRS-sponsored VITA sites and AARP-sponsored Tax Counseling for the Elderly sites prepare returns and homestead claims free. Call 211 or 1-800-906-9887 for a site. Bring your rent certificate or tax bill.(Schedule H instructions)
- Questions. DOR's homestead unit: DORHomesteadCredit@wisconsin.gov or (608) 266-8641.(Schedule H instructions)
Owners: the Dane County property tax guide covers the other credits on your bill, and energy rebates lists income-qualified programs.
Questions
How much is the Wisconsin homestead credit?
Up to $1,168 for tax year 2025. The amount depends on your household income and how much property tax or rent you paid. Lower income and higher rent or taxes mean a bigger credit, and it shrinks to nothing as household income nears $24,680.
What is the income limit for homestead credit in Wisconsin?
Household income has to be under $24,680 for 2025. Household income counts taxable and some nontaxable income, such as Social Security, for you and a spouse you live with, minus $500 for each qualifying dependent.
Can renters get the homestead credit?
Yes. Renters count 20% of the rent they paid if heat was included, or 25% if it wasn't, as their property taxes. Your landlord signs a rent certificate that you attach to the claim.
What is the renter's school property tax credit?
A separate credit on the Wisconsin income tax return (Form 1, line 16) for rent paid on your main home. There's no income limit. It's worth up to $300, but it only lowers the tax you owe, so it doesn't help if you owe no Wisconsin income tax. You can claim it and the homestead credit in the same year.
Can I still file for a past year?
Yes, within about four years. The 2025 claim is due April 15, 2030, and the 2024 claim is due April 15, 2029. You use that year's forms and rent certificate.
Do I have to file a tax return to get the homestead credit?
No. If you don't need to file a Wisconsin return, you can file Schedule H or H-EZ by itself. The credit is paid to you even if you owe no tax.