How to get property tax help if your business was hurt by the COVID-19 pandemic

King County business owners have until the end of the month to apply for a break on certain property taxes if they lost income last year because of the coronavirus pandemic. 

With the economic fallout from the virus still unfolding, state lawmakers last week passed a bill requiring county treasurers to allow deferral and payment plans for certain 2021 property taxes. To qualify, a property must be “primarily used for business purposes” and the taxpayer must have lost at least a quarter of their revenue attributable to that property in 2020 compared to 2019. 

To get help, taxpayers must apply by April 30, the date each year when the first-half payment of property taxes is due. According to the bill, a county treasurer must deny requests filed after April 30.

To apply in King County, fill out and submit the online form at kingcounty.gov/TaxDeferral.

Whether in King County or other counties, taxpayers can also apply by filling out a Washington State Department of Revenue application form found at dor.wa.gov/taxes-rates/property-tax and emailing the completed form to the county treasurer.

If a tenant pays the building’s property taxes, the owner must pass on the benefit. Payment plans will only extend through the end of this year, according to the King County Treasury.

The deferral does not apply to residential or nonbusiness related property.

For other types of property taxes, King County offers payment plans as well as assistance programs for people who are 60 or older, retired because of a disability or who have a low income. Visit the King County Treasury website or the King County Assessor website for more information.