Elderly Exemptions Clause 41C

The elderly exemption 41C provides assistance to elderly taxpayers who meet the age, income, whole estate and residency requirements below. Please note that if you are elderly but do not meet one or all of the personal exemption 41C requirements, you may be eligible for a lesser amount of assistance under personal exemption 17D.


Taxpayers who are eligible for personal exemption 41C will receive a reduction in their tax liability of $1,000.


Applications must be filed by November 1st in order to have the exemption taken off of the first actual tax bill in January, the deadline for applications is April 1. Filing an application does not entitle an applicant to a delay in making a tax payment.


Documentation

An applicant for an exemption must provide to the Assessor's Office information that is reasonably required to establish eligibility. This information may include, but not be limited to:

  • Birth Certificates
  • Evidence of domicile and occupancy
  • Income tax returns
  • Current banking information

Eligibility

An individual must be (a) 70 years or older or (b) joint owner with a spouse 70 years or older as of July 1 of the tax year.


Ownership & Domicile

Under Clause 41D, an individual must own and occupy the subject property on July 1 of the tax year. In addition to owning and occupying the subject property, an individual must have been continuously domiciled in Massachusetts for the 10 years preceding the application and have owned and occupied the property or other property in Massachusetts for 5 years.


To satisfy this ownership requirement, the person's interest must be worth at least $4,000. The person may own this interest solely, as a joint owner or as a tenant in common. However, if ownership is joint or a tenancy in common with someone other than a spouse, the exemption amount is reduced to that proportion of $1,000 as the person's ownership interest in the property.


Satisfy Ownership

The holder of a life estate satisfies the ownership requirement. If the domicile is held in a trust, a person can only satisfy the ownership interest if he:

  • Is a trustee or co-trustee of that trust, and
  • Possesses a sufficient beneficial interest in the domicile through that trust

Annual Income & Whole Estate

Eligibility amounts for Clause 41C for Fiscal Year 2024 are as follows:

Gross receipts minus social security allowance must be less than: 

                                                                                                  GROSS INCOME 

  • $22,562  if single      +   Social Security Deduction $5,653 = $28,215
  • $30,769  if married +   Social Security Deduction  $8,480 = $39,249

Whole estate less the value of the home except for the value of any portion which exceeds three dwelling units and produces income cannot exceed:

  • $46,466  if single
  • $58,082  if married

The value of a person's (a) cemetery plots, (b) registered motor vehicles, (c) wearing apparel and (d) household furniture and effects kept at the domicile, should be excluded from the calculation of the person's whole estate for purposes of these clauses.