TRENTON – Gov. Jon S. Corzine on Friday, May 29 announced that the deadline for New Jersey’s senior and disabled homeowners to file 2008 Homestead Rebate applications has been extended to Aug. 17, 2009.
The deadline for filing a 2008 Senior Freeze (Property Tax Reimbursement) application has also been extended to Aug. 17. The original deadline for filing 2008 applications for both programs was June 1.
“The June deadline is almost here and we are aware that many of our senior and disabled residents still need some more time to submit their property tax relief applications,” Corzine stated in a release. “With this exten-sion, they will have plenty of additional time to file for both the Homestead Rebate and Senior Freeze pro-grams.”
Homeowners who are 65 or older or disabled and have received a Homestead Rebate application but have not yet filed can do so by phone by calling 1-877-658-2972, or they can file online through the Division of Taxa-tion’s Web site at www.state.nj.us/treasury/taxation /
The automated phone and Internet filing systems are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week during the filing period. Those homeowners who were aged 65 or older or disabled as of December 31, 2008, and have questions about the Homestead Rebate, or who have not received a 2008 application and believe they are eligible, should call the Homestead Rebate Hotline at 1‑888‑238‑1233. Representatives are available from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
The Homestead Rebate application deadline has also been extended for tenants. The tenant rebate application (Form TR-1040), which is filed with the applicant’s New Jersey income tax return, was due on April 15, 2009.
For tenants who have already filed their 2008 New Jersey income tax returns, but did not complete the tenant rebate application even though they were eligible, the new filing deadline is August 17. Tenants who are not required to file a New Jersey income tax return, or who are filing their return under extension can still file only Form TR-1040 to apply for a Homestead Rebate, and have until November 2 to do so.
The tenant rebate application and instructions are available on the Division of Taxation’s Web site. Tenants who need to speak to a Division representative can contact the Customer Service Center at 1-888-213-8623 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
For more information on the 2008 Senior Freeze (Property Tax Reimbursement) Program, or to obtain an appli-cation, residents can contact the Property Tax Reimbursement Hotline at 1-800-882-6597 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Information about the Senior Freeze Program is also available on the Divi-sion of Taxation’s Web site at www.state.nj.us/treasury/taxation/propfrez.shtml
Checks for eligible senior and disabled homeowners who file their 2008 applications by the original filing dead-line of June 1 are scheduled to be mailed in mid-July for the Senior Freeze and early August for the Homestead Rebate. Checks for eligible senior or disabled homeowners who file 2008 applications after the original June 1 deadlines will be processed and delivered as quickly as possible thereafter. Homestead Rebate checks for eligi-ble senior and disabled tenants, who file their applications with their income tax returns, are also scheduled to be mailed in early August.
