Florida property taxes follow a fixed annual rhythm. Knowing the dates protects both your appeal rights and your discounts.
January 1: assessment date. Your property's value and exemption eligibility are set as of this day. Ownership or condition changes later in the year affect next year's bill.
March 1: exemption deadline. Homestead and most other exemption applications are due to the Property Appraiser.
August: TRIM notice. The Property Appraiser mails the Truth in Millage (TRIM) notice showing your market, assessed, and taxable values, proposed millage rates from each taxing authority, and public hearing dates. This is not a bill, but it is your main chance to act.
25 days after TRIM mailing: appeal deadline. Under FS 194.011, a petition to the Value Adjustment Board on valuation must be filed on or before the 25th day following the TRIM mailing. Talk to the Property Appraiser's office first; many issues resolve informally. unverified
November 1: bills mailed. The Pinellas County Tax Collector mails tax bills by November 1. Early payment earns statutory discounts under FS 197.162: 4% in November (or within 30 days of the notice), 3% in December, 2% in January, 1% in February, and face value in March. unverified
April 1: delinquency. Unpaid taxes become delinquent, adding interest and costs; continued non-payment leads to a tax certificate sale on the parcel.
Installment option. Taxpayers with bills over $100 can prepay in four installments (June 30, September 30, December 31, March 31) with roughly a 3.5% overall discount. Applications for the next tax year are accepted November 1 through April 30 through the Tax Collector. unverified
Escrowed mortgages. If your lender escrows taxes, the lender typically pays in November to capture the 4% discount; verify the payment appeared, especially in the first year after a purchase or refinance, because a new owner's bill can still show the seller's exemptions and a misleadingly low amount that resets the following year.
One Pinellas-specific caution: the Tax Collector page fetched for this article displayed the installment-plan discount tiers (6%, 4.5%, 3%) alongside monthly deadlines; the standard early-payment schedule remains the statutory 4/3/2/1.