Montana homeowners pay a median of $2,693 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.72%, the 33rd highest of the 51 states we cover. The deadline to appeal: 30 days after notice (AB-26 or CTAB). Here is who sets your value, how to challenge it and what evidence works.
Closed for 2026Closed for most homeowners. The last chance to challenge 2026 values (June 1, 2026) has passed; new appraisal notices for the 2027-2028 cycle are expected in 2027, and you will have 30 days from the date on that notice. If you received a new notice or a homestead-rate denial recently, you have 30 days from its date.
You have 30 days from the date printed on your Classification and Appraisal Notice. Within that time you can either send Form AB-26 to the DOR for an informal review, or appeal straight to the County Tax Appeal Board by filing Form MTAB-401 with the county clerk and recorder. If you used AB-26, you then have 30 days from the date on the DOR's decision letter to appeal to the county board. If you miss the 30 days, you can still file an AB-26 or a county board appeal until June 1 of the second year of the cycle, but any change applies only to that second year. You get one appeal per property per 2-year cycle. Example: Yellowstone County's tax appeal board tells owners they have 30 days from the date on the notice, and until June 1 of the second year for a second-year-only review; for the 2025-2026 cycle that late date was June 1, 2026.
In a reappraisal year the DOR mails every owner a Classification and Appraisal Notice. In 2025 these went out starting in late June. It is not a tax bill. In the second year of a cycle you get a new notice only if something changed, such as ownership, classification or value. Tax bills come later from the county treasurer, usually in late summer or fall; the first half is due November 30 (or 30 days after the bill is postmarked, if later).
Where you file depends on your county. Pick yours for the office contacts, local tax figures and a step-by-step guide.
Enter the market value on your assessment notice and what you think the home would really sell for. We estimate the yearly saving if the board agrees with you.
Some states cap how fast the taxable value of a home can rise (California, Florida, Michigan and Texas homesteads, for example). If your taxable value is already held below market value by a cap, a lower market value may not lower this year's bill.
The state Department of Revenue (DOR) values all homes, not the county. It works through local field offices; each county is served by one. Appeals go first to the County Tax Appeal Board (CTAB), a local board appointed by the county commissioners that is not part of the DOR. Homes are valued at full market value as of one statewide date. For the 2025-2026 cycle that date is January 1, 2024. That value times a tax rate set by law gives your taxable value; local mill levies are then applied to it to get your tax. Since 2026 a primary residence (homestead) gets lower, tiered rates: 0.76% of the first $378,000 of value, then 0.90%, 1.10% and 1.90% on higher slices. Second homes pay a flat 1.90%. Homes are revalued every 2 years. The current cycle covers tax years 2025 and 2026. The next cycle covers 2027 and 2028, with new notices in 2027.
Call or visit your DOR field office first; an appraiser can explain your value and fix wrong details (square footage, bedrooms, baths). You can check your record at property.mt.gov. For a formal informal review, file Form AB-26 (online or on paper) within 30 days of the notice. With it you can ask for an information packet with your property record card and the 3-5 sales the DOR used, if you sign a confidentiality agreement. The DOR cannot raise your value in this review unless it finds a physical change or a data error. AB-26 is optional; you may go straight to the county board.
What works in Montana: Sales of similar nearby homes close to the valuation date (January 1, 2024 for the 2025-2026 cycle); later sales can be rejected; An independent appraisal that meets Montana standards and is dated within 6 months of the valuation date; Your own purchase price, if you bought within about 6 months of the valuation date in an arm's-length sale; Corrections to your property record card (size, bedrooms, baths, quality, condition) with photos; The DOR's own information packet and comparable sales, requested with Form AB-26; Repair estimates or a builder's cost breakdown for problems or recent work.
Fill out Form MTAB-401 (Appeal to the County Tax Appeal Board). List the DOR's land and building values and the values you ask for, and explain why the DOR is wrong. Send the original and one copy to the county clerk and recorder (not the DOR). The clerk's receipt date counts, so allow time for mail. The board hears appeals in the county seat, generally between July 1 and December 31, with you and the DOR present. You must attend; the board can excuse you only on written request with the DOR's agreement. Bring five copies of papers and two copies of photos. The board mails its decision within 3 days of deciding. Cost: No filing fee is listed on the form.
The DOR's value is presumed correct, and you must prove it is wrong, by a preponderance of the evidence (more likely than not). The boards must consider an independent appraisal that meets Montana appraisal standards and was done within 6 months of the valuation date. At MTAB such an appraisal on a home is presumed to set the value unless the DOR rebuts it with strong evidence, such as its own appraisal.
By law, the later of 45 days after the county board hearing or 30 days after the county board mails its decision. The MTAB form says MTAB must receive your appeal within 30 days of when you received the county decision, so file within 30 days to be safe. File Form MTAB-801 with the Montana Tax Appeal Board in Helena, attach your county appeal form and the county decision, and send a copy to the DOR. You must have attended the county hearing. After a scheduling call, hearings are usually held in person at the MTAB office in Helena and take about two hours; other arrangements are possible for hardship. Homeowners may choose an informal MTAB review instead, but then neither side can appeal to court. Otherwise MTAB decisions can be taken to district court within 60 days.
If you file on time (within 30 days of the cycle's first notice), the lower value applies to both years of the cycle. A late second-year filing changes only the second year. If you paid under protest, the county refunds the overpaid tax with interest; without a protest payment you get no refund. There is no freeze after the cycle; the DOR sets a new value for the next one.
Montana law requires comparable homes with similar market values to have substantially equal taxable values, so you can point to similar homes valued lower. But the boards decide your home's market value as of the valuation date, so pair any comparison with sales or an appraisal. This works only in limited cases. Run the numbers with our unequal assessment calculator.
Most wins start with a mistake in the assessor's record of your home. Check it line by line.
Record card checklistAn exemption is separate from an appeal: you apply once and it cuts your taxable value every year. Check you have every one you qualify for.
Since 2026, a home you own and live in at least 7 months a year is taxed at lower tiered rates (0.76% on the first $378,000 of value in 2026). You must be enrolled; owners who got the 2025 property tax rebate were enrolled automatically. The 2027 enrollment window is May 4, 2026 to March 1, 2027.
Cuts the tax rate on your home by 30%, 50% or 80% if your income is low (for tax year 2027: 2025 income up to $29,943 single or $40,131 married/head of household). Apply by April 15; it renews while you stay eligible.
Reduces the tax rate on the home of a veteran rated 100% disabled from a service-connected disability, or an unmarried surviving spouse, by 50% to 100% depending on income.
You can handle every step yourself. Someone else can represent you at the county board and MTAB if you name them on the appeal form. For an AB-26 review by an agent, include the DOR power of attorney form. MTAB is a court of record, so complex cases may warrant a lawyer, but one is not required.
Fill in your details and download a written appeal statement as a PDF or Word file. Most boards also require their own appeal form: file the form and attach this letter and your evidence to it.
Tax Appeal Map is a free information site, not a law firm or appraiser. The letter is a template, not legal advice.
You have 30 days from the date printed on your Classification and Appraisal Notice. Within that time you can either send Form AB-26 to the DOR for an informal review, or appeal straight to the County Tax Appeal Board by filing Form MTAB-401 with the county clerk and recorder. If you used AB-26, you then have 30 days from the date on the DOR's decision letter to appeal to the county board. If you miss the 30 days, you can still file an AB-26 or a county board appeal until June 1 of the second year of the cycle, but any change applies only to that second year. You get one appeal per property per 2-year cycle. Example: Yellowstone County's tax appeal board tells owners they have 30 days from the date on the notice, and until June 1 of the second year for a second-year-only review; for the 2025-2026 cycle that late date was June 1, 2026.
With the County Tax Appeal Board (CTAB) appeal. Fill out Form MTAB-401 (Appeal to the County Tax Appeal Board). List the DOR's land and building values and the values you ask for, and explain why the DOR is wrong. Send the original and one copy to the county clerk and recorder (not the DOR). The clerk's receipt date counts, so allow time for mail. The board hears appeals in the county seat, generally between July 1 and December 31, with you and the DOR present. You must attend; the board can excuse you only on written request with the DOR's agreement. Bring five copies of papers and two copies of photos. The board mails its decision within 3 days of deciding.
No filing fee is listed on the form.
Call or visit your DOR field office first; an appraiser can explain your value and fix wrong details (square footage, bedrooms, baths). You can check your record at property.mt.gov. For a formal informal review, file Form AB-26 (online or on paper) within 30 days of the notice. With it you can ask for an information packet with your property record card and the 3-5 sales the DOR used, if you sign a confidentiality agreement. The DOR cannot raise your value in this review unless it finds a physical change or a data error. AB-26 is optional; you may go straight to the county board.
You can appeal to the Montana Tax Appeal Board (MTAB). By law, the later of 45 days after the county board hearing or 30 days after the county board mails its decision. The MTAB form says MTAB must receive your appeal within 30 days of when you received the county decision, so file within 30 days to be safe. File Form MTAB-801 with the Montana Tax Appeal Board in Helena, attach your county appeal form and the county decision, and send a copy to the DOR. You must have attended the county hearing. After a scheduling call, hearings are usually held in person at the MTAB office in Helena and take about two hours; other arrangements are possible for hardship. Homeowners may choose an informal MTAB review instead, but then neither side can appeal to court. Otherwise MTAB decisions can be taken to district court within 60 days.
If you file on time (within 30 days of the cycle's first notice), the lower value applies to both years of the cycle. A late second-year filing changes only the second year. If you paid under protest, the county refunds the overpaid tax with interest; without a protest payment you get no refund. There is no freeze after the cycle; the DOR sets a new value for the next one.
Checked 2026-10 against official Montana sources. Local deadlines and fees can differ; confirm with your assessor or board.