Renter Rebate
What is the Renter Rebate?
I Want to Get the Renter Rebate.
What Do I Do?
Do you want to file your own Renter
Rebate? Follow These Three Steps
Step 1) Find Out If You Qualify for the
Renter Rebate
Step 2) The Landlord's Certificate
My Landlord Didn't Give Me a
Landlord's Certificate. What Can I Do?
My Landlord Gave Me the Landlord's
Certificate, But It's Wrong. What Can I Do?
I Called the Vermont Tax Department.
My Landlord Still Won't Give Me the Landlord's Certificate or the
Information on the Landlord's Certificate is Still Wrong.
Does Your Landlord Refuse to Give You
a Landlord's Certificate? You Can File the Landlord's Certificate
Yourself.
Step 3) Form 141: Renter Rebate Claim
What is the Renter Rebate?
The Renter Rebate is a tax credit. You must have a low enough
income to get the credit. You must have paid rent in Vermont for
all 12 months of the tax year. You must have been a legal resident of
Vermont for the whole tax year. You can't be somebody else's dependent. Only
one member of the household can claim the credit.
I Want to Get the Renter Rebate.
What Do I Do?
You can get free, professional tax preparation at a
VITA site or TCE site near you. Ask them to prepare the
Renter Rebate for you. You will need to bring in the Landlord's
Certificate that your landlord gave you.
Do you want to file your own
Renter Rebate? Follow These Three Steps
Step 1) Find Out If You Qualify for
the Renter Rebate
The Renter Rebate has income limits. Do you want to find out if you
qualify? Fill out Vermont Department of Taxes
Form 144: Household Income form.
You can only get the Renter Rebate if your household income is low
enough. Form 144 allows you to not count certain income so that you
can figure out your Renter Rebate. That income still counts for other
parts of your tax return. But it doesn't count for figuring out if you
qualify for the Renter Rebate.
Step 2) The Landlord's Certificate
Your landlord must give you a completed and accurate Vermont Tax form.
The tax form is called a "Landlord's Certificate." The Landlord's
Certificate must show how much rent you paid during the tax year.
When Does My Landlord Have to Give Me the Landlord's Certificate?
It depends on how many housing units your landlord rents out. A unit is
an apartment, house, mobile home lot, or other unit of housing. Does your
landlord rent out five or more units? Then your landlord must give you your
Landlord Certificate by January 31st. Does your landlord rent out four or
fewer than four units? Then your landlord must give you your Landlord's
Certificate a reasonable amount of time after you ask for it. A
reasonable time usually means within a few days.
What if I move before December 31st? Your landlord must give you your
Landlord's Certificate when you leave or mail the Certificate to your new
address or to the last address your landlord has for you.
My Landlord Didn't Give Me a
Landlord's Certificate. What Can I Do?
Ask your landlord for the Vermont Tax Department Landlord's Certificate:
Form LC-142. Your landlord is required to give it to you.
I Asked, But My Landlord Still Won't Give Me the Landlord's
Certificate
Call the Vermont Tax Department toll free at (866) 828-2865. Tell them
your landlord won't give you the Landlord's Certificate for the Renter
Rebate. The Vermont Tax Department could fine your landlord if he refuses
to give you your Landlord's Certificate or gives you a Certificate with the
wrong information on it. The fine is a minimum of $100.00.
My Landlord Gave Me the Landlord's
Certificate, But It's Wrong. What Can I Do?
Does the Landlord Certificate have the wrong amount of rent or other
wrong information? Ask your landlord to explain what the form means.
You might just misunderstand the form.
What if it's not a mistake or misunderstanding? Call the
Vermont Tax Department toll free at (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.
I Called the Vermont Tax Department.
My Landlord Still Won't Give Me the Landlord's Certificate or the
Information on the Landlord's Certificate is Still Wrong.
Call Vermont Legal Aid to see if you qualify for free
legal help.
Does Your Landlord Refuse to Give
You a Landlord's Certificate? Or is the Information on the Landlord's
Certificate Wrong?
You can file the Landlord's Certificate yourself. You must fill out the
Landlord's Certificate: form LC-142. The Vermont Tax Department doesn't
have this form online. You have to call the Vermont Tax Department for
the form. Their toll-free telephone number is (866) 828-2865. Ask them
to mail you a blank Landlord's Certificate form.
You must attach copies of your cancelled checks or rent receipts to
the Landlord's Certificate. You also must attach a letter explaining why
you aren't attaching a Landlord Certificate filled out by your landlord.
Write your landlord's name, address, and telephone number on the LC-142.
Also write this information on the letter you send explaining why you aren't
sending a Landlord Certificate filled out by your landlord.
Step 3) Form 141: Renter Rebate
Claim
Fill out Vermont Department of Taxes
Form 141: Renter Rebate Claim. You will
need more information from the Vermont Department of Taxes website. Read the
2007 Vermont Income Tax Return instructions on their
website. Here's the link to the
School District Codes on the Vermont Tax Department's website.
Renter Rebate Updated 2/16/07
Vermont Law Help, 2008.
This is a website about Vermont law. We give this information
as a public service. It is not legal advice. We are not acting as your
lawyer.
Always consult a lawyer, if you can, before taking legal action.
