Every year somebody calls me on May 20.
They found the notice under a stack of school papers. Or they thought the deadline was the end of the month, because it used to be. Or they were in the hospital, which is the one that actually counts.
The bad news first: missing the May 15 protest deadline closes the easy door.
The good news: Texas leaves a few side doors open. They’re narrow, they have their own deadlines, and most people never hear about them.
Door 1: a late protest for good cause
Tax Code Section 41.44(b) lets you file after the deadline and still get a hearing if two things are true:
- You file before the appraisal review board approves the appraisal records. That happens by July 20, often a few days earlier.
- The board decides you had good cause for missing it.
The statute doesn’t define good cause for this one, so each ARB applies its own standard. The reasons that tend to work are the ones you couldn’t control: a hospital stay, a death in the family, active military duty, a notice that went to the wrong address.
“I forgot” doesn’t work. “I was busy” doesn’t work. I’ve watched people try.
If you’ve got a real reason, file the protest with a short written explanation and whatever proof you have (discharge papers, an obituary, deployment orders). Do it the day you realize you missed it. The clock to July is shorter than it looks.
Door 2: the district never sent the notice you were owed
Under Section 41.411, you can protest the district’s failure to deliver a notice it was legally required to send you, like a notice of appraised value after an increase.
If the board agrees you didn’t get it, you get a hearing on the value too.
Two catches:
- You have to file before your taxes go delinquent, which is February 1 for most bills.
- You have to pay the taxes on the part of the value you’re not disputing before that date, or you lose the right to a final decision (Section 41.4115).
“I didn’t get it” and “I didn’t open it” aren’t the same thing. The district has mailing records, and the ARB will ask.
Door 3: the value is way off (a 25.25(d) motion)
This is the big one, and it’s the one I’d look at first if your number is truly wrong.
Section 25.25(d) lets you ask the ARB to correct the roll if the appraised value is more than:
- one-fourth too high on your homestead, or
- one-third too high on anything else (rentals, land, commercial).
So on a homestead the district has at $400,000, you’d have to show the correct value is about $320,000 or less. That’s not a fine-tuning tool. It’s for the district getting something badly wrong: square footage that isn’t there, a pool you don’t have, a building valued as finished when it’s a shell.
You file it before the delinquency date and pay the undisputed taxes on time. And it’s off the table if you already protested that year’s value.
Door 4: clerical errors, going back five years
Section 25.25(c) covers a narrower set of mistakes, but it reaches back up to five years:
- clerical errors that changed your tax,
- the same property appraised twice,
- property on the roll that doesn’t exist the way the district describes it,
- the wrong owner.
This doesn’t let you argue market value. It lets you fix facts. I saw plenty of these from the inside at the Guadalupe district: a demolished building still on the roll, an acre counted twice after a split. When the fact is wrong, the fix is usually clean.
Which door is yours?
Go in this order:
- Is it before late July and did something outside your control stop you? Late protest.
- Did the district skip a notice it owed you? Failure-of-notice protest, before February 1.
- Is the value off by a quarter (homestead) or a third (everything else)? 25.25(d), before February 1.
- Is a fact on the record flat wrong? 25.25(c), up to five years back.
If none of those fit, you’re done for this year. That stings, but it’s one year.
What to do with the rest of this year
Check your exemptions. If you’ve owned and lived in the place since January 1 and don’t have a homestead exemption, file it now. You can file late, up to two years after the taxes go delinquent, and get refunds for the years you missed. That’s often worth more than a protest would’ve been.
Then pull your record and make sure the facts are right before next spring. Square footage, bedrooms, pool, condition. Those are the same facts your next protest will be built on.
So it doesn’t happen again
The fix isn’t a better calendar reminder. It’s handing the deadline to somebody whose whole year runs on it.
I file protests across Texas. $100 a year plus 25% of what I save you. Once you’re signed up, your protest gets filed every year whether or not you remember there’s a deadline.
You’ll still get the notice. You just won’t have to find it under the school papers.
Frequently asked questions
Can I still protest my Texas property taxes after May 15?
Sometimes. You can file a late protest before the appraisal review board approves the records (by July 20) if the board finds you had good cause. You may also be able to protest a notice the district failed to deliver, or file a correction motion under Tax Code Section 25.25 before taxes become delinquent.
What counts as good cause for a late property tax protest in Texas?
The statute doesn’t define it for late protests, so each ARB sets its own standard. Reasons outside your control, like a hospital stay, a death in the family, or active military duty, are the ones that usually work. Forgetting or being busy usually doesn’t.
What is a 25.25(d) motion?
It’s a request to the ARB to correct the appraisal roll when the value is more than one-fourth too high on a homestead or more than one-third too high on other property. It must be filed before the delinquency date, the undisputed taxes must be paid on time, and it isn’t available if you already protested that year.
How far back can I correct a property tax error in Texas?
Clerical errors, multiple appraisals, property that doesn’t exist as described, and ownership errors can be corrected for the current year and the five preceding years under Tax Code Section 25.25(c). Market value arguments aren’t allowed under that section.
Can I file a homestead exemption late in Texas?
Yes. You can file a late homestead exemption up to two years after the delinquency date for the year you’re claiming, and the taxing units refund the overpaid taxes.
Sources: Texas Tax Code Sections 41.44(b) (late protests), 41.411 and 41.4115 (failure to deliver notice and payment requirement), 25.25(c) and 25.25(d) (roll corrections), 41.12 (records approval) and 11.431 (late homestead), via statutes.capitol.texas.gov, and the Texas Comptroller’s Appraisal Protests and Appeals page. Updated October 2026.