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Exempt Owner Responsibilities

If your property has been determined to be exempt from property taxes by the City of Milwaukee, you must fulfill the following responsibilities.  

Property owners exempt from property taxes have two major responsibilities: reporting accurate information to the City Assessor's Office, and staying current on City fees and charges.

Reporting to the City Assessor's Office

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  Biennial Tax Exemption Report
  • You MUST file a Tax Exemption Report (PC-220) by March 31st of every even-numbered year.
  • Starting in 2024, a filing fee is also due with your Tax Exemption Report.
    • Churches that qualify for property tax exemption under Wis. Stat. §70.11(4)(a)1 do not need to submit a fee.
    • The fee amount is $50 for one taxkey and $15 for each additional taxkey.
    • Make checks payable to City of Milwaukee and submit with your form.
    • If you do not pay this fee, it will be added as a special charge to your 2024 tax bill.
  • The Assessor uses information on the Tax Exemption Report to determine whether your property still meets the statutory criteria for property tax exempt status.
  • Not all exempt properties are required to complete a Tax Exemption Report.  To determine whether you must file this report, please refer to the Wisconsin Department of Revenue’s PC-220 information page.
  Partially Taxed Report

Property owners of exempt properties that are taxed in part MUST file Unrelated Business Income Report (PC-227) by March 15 every year.

  Exempt Low Income Housing

City Fees and Charges

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  City Service Fees and Special Charges

Your organization is still responsible for paying other fees and charges billed by the City of Milwaukee.  These include:

  • The Municipal Services Bill, commonly referred to as the water bill, which is invoiced on a quarterly basis;
  • Special assessments, which are charges for things like sidewalk replacement and speed humps;
  • Fire inspection fees; 
  • Any other charge listed under “Detail of Special Assessments and Other Charges” on the tax bill you receive in December. A list of the special assessments and other charges that can be added to the tax bill, and who to contact regarding them, can be found on the City of Milwaukee Treasurer’s web site.
  You May Get a Tax Bill Each Year
  • Even if your property is exempt, you may get a tax bill each year, even if no property taxes are due. You may be charged for Municipal Service Charges on the tax bill, and you will need to pay those charges in a timely manner or risk your account going delinquent. 
  • Once unpaid charges are added to the tax bill, the charges must be collected like property taxes. Delinquent accounts may be transferred to an outside firm for collection, just like any other debt, if not paid in full by October 31st. 
  • If you are contacted by someone regarding the debt, you should not ignore it. You should contact the collection firm immediately to determine the circumstances surrounding the debt. The Treasurer’s Office cannot reduce, eliminate, or forgive any charges. If you question the validity of the charge, you must speak with the City Department that issued the charge. Who to contact regarding charges added to the tax bill can be found City of Milwaukee Treasurer’s web site.
  The City may foreclose on your property if you fail to pay any charges due that were added to your tax bill.

After three years, if you fail to pay the charges or fees due and outstanding, the City may file a legal action to foreclose on your property to satisfy the debt owed. This means that you could lose ownership of the property. If you receive a notice regarding a foreclosure action, you should NOT ignore it. This could result in a default foreclosure judgment, which will terminate your ownership of the property. The City of Milwaukee does NOT want to foreclose on properties - it is beneficial to all for property owners to pay their bills and retain ownership of their properties.

If your property is currently taxable or has been denied property tax exempt status, please see How to Request Tax Exemption.

Nicole F. Larsen

Commissioner of Assessments


 414-286-3651
General Information


Web Request: Ask the Assessor


  [email protected] 


 City Hall, 200 E. Wells Street, Room 507, Milwaukee, WI 53202


 Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM - 4:45 PM


 

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