Renter Rebate | VTLawHelp.org

Did you get help with rent from the Rental Housing Stabilization Program or the RHSP Money to Move Program? Money directly paid to the landlord from those programs should not be entered as a subsidy from the government or as rent paid by the tenant. Landlords, do not include rent received from these programs on the Landlord's Certificate LC-142 line 3 — total rent paid for the calendar year. See the Vermont Department of Taxes website for details.

The Renter Rebate is a tax credit. It can be used to pay your taxes, or added to your refund check, or, if you don’t have taxable income, sent to you in a check.

There are very specific requirements for you to get the credit:

You must have a low enough income.
You must have rented in Vermont for all 12 months of the tax year, even if you rented in more than one place and even if you did not pay all of your rent. (You can also be eligible of you own a home and sell it before April 1 and then rent for the rest of the year.)
You must have been a legal resident of Vermont for the whole tax year.
You can’t be somebody else’s dependent.
You must be the only member of your household claiming the credit.

Your Renter Rebate Claim is typically due on April 15. You can file a claim late — but only up to October 15. If you file after the first due date, a $50 late filing fee will be taken out of your Renter Rebate. October 15 is the final deadline for a Renter Rebate Claim. This is different from most tax credits.

If your income is low enough, you can get free, professional tax preparation through:

To find a VITA or TCE site near you:

visit the IRS Free Tax Help web page between mid-January and April, or
call Vermont 2-1-1.

Ask them to prepare the Renter Rebate for you. If you go to VITA or TCE, you will need to bring in a Landlord’s Certificate. Your landlord should give it to you. If you do not get the Landlord’s Certificate, ask for it. If you have trouble getting the form you need from your landlord, see our suggestions below.

Filing Your Own Renter Rebate

To file your own Renter Rebate, follow these three steps:

Find out if you qualify for the Renter Rebate.
The Renter Rebate has income limits. To find out if you qualify, fill out Vermont Department of Taxes. Form 144: Household Income (It’s the second form in this PDF.) Form 144 tells you what income must be counted for the Renter Rebate. See the Department of Taxes instructions page for the Renter Rebate.
Get the Landlord’s Certificate from your landlord.
Your landlord must give you a completed and accurate Vermont tax form. The tax form is called Form LC-142: Landlord’s Certificate. The Landlord’s Certificate must show how much rent you paid during the tax year. Read more about the Landlord’s Certificate below.
Fill out Form 141: Renter Rebate Claim.
Fill out Vermont Department of Taxes Form 141: Renter Rebate Claim. Claims for rent you paid may be filed as late as October 15. But if you file after April 15, a $50 late filing fee will be deducted from your rebate.

You may be able to file your Renter Rebate for free online, or you can mail it to the Vermont Department of Taxes.

You will need:

more information from the Vermont Department of Taxes website
your school district code

Landlord’s Certificate

How do I get a Landlord’s Certificate?

Most landlords are required to give you the Landlord’s Certificate by January 31.

If your landlord only rents one unit, you have to ask for a Landlord’s Certificate. Then your landlord must give you your Landlord’s Certificate within a reasonable amount of time after you ask for it. A “reasonable amount of time” usually means within about a week. The state may fine landlords for each Landlord Certificate they don’t provide.

If you moved during the year, both landlords should give you a certificate. Make sure your previous landlord has your address.

What can I do if my landlord didn’t give me a Landlord’s Certificate?

If your landlord did not give you a Landlord’s Certificate, ask the landlord to give you the Vermont Tax Department Landlord’s Certificate: Form LC-142. Your landlord is required to give it to you.

If you ask, but your landlord still won’t give you the Landlord’s Certificate, you may still file a paper Renter Rebate Claim. Complete a paper Landlord Certificate. Include your landlord’s name, address, and telephone number, and attach copies of your cancelled checks or receipts for rent paid. Attach a letter explaining why you could not get a Landlord Certificate. Do not sign the form.

The Vermont Tax Department could fine your landlord $200 if he or she refuses to give you your Landlord’s Certificate.

My landlord gave me the Landlord’s Certificate, but it’s wrong. What can I do?

If the Landlord’s Certificate has the wrong amount of rent or other wrong information, ask your landlord to explain what the form means. You might just not understand what the form is asking for.

If it’s not a mistake or misunderstanding, call the Vermont Department of Taxes toll-free at 1-866-828-2865. Tell them that the information your landlord put on the Landlord’s Certificate is wrong. Ask them to help you get your landlord to correct it.

Mobile Home Owners

Mobile home owners who live in their mobile home may benefit from both of these programs:

If you rent the lot, you can file a Renter Rebate Claim for the lot rent. Go to the Department of Taxes website for the forms and instructions.
If you own the mobile home, you can file Form HS-122: Homestead Declaration and Form HI-144: Vermont Household Income to ask for an adjustment to the property tax you are paying on your mobile home. Go to the Department of Taxes website for the forms and instructions.

To be eligible, you must file these forms before October 15. File the forms before April 15 to avoid a penalty if your town has one. File these forms even if you do not have to file taxes.

Need More Help?

Here are some steps you can take if you called the Vermont Tax Department, and your landlord still won’t give you the Landlord’s Certificate or change the information that is wrong.

Contact us to see if you qualify for free legal help. Fill out our form and we will call you back. Your information will be sent to Legal Services Vermont, which screens requests for help for both Vermont Legal Aid and Legal Services Vermont. You can also call us at 1-800-889-2047.
If we can’t help you, you can file the Landlord’s Certificate yourself. Here’s how:

Fill out the Landlord’s Certificate: Form LC-142. If you can’t print the certificate and want the Vermont Department of Taxes to mail a paper copy to you, call them toll-free at 1-866-828-2865.
Write your landlord’s name, address and telephone number on the form.
Attach copies of your canceled checks or rent receipts to the Landlord’s Certificate.
Attach a letter explaining why the Landlord’s Certificate isn’t filled out by your landlord. Include your landlord’s name, address and telephone number in the letter.
Fill out the Vermont Department of Taxes Form 141: Renter Rebate Claim and Form 144: Household Income.
Mail the packet to the Vermont Department of Taxes at PO Box 1881, Montpelier, VT 05601-1881.

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