Instructions and FAQs for Annual Report for Exempt Property Schools and Charitable

Frequently Asked Questions

Who must file the annual report?

The law requires every owner of real or personal property that has been granted exemption by the Property Tax Administrator to file an annual report.

What is the filing deadline?

Each report must be filed by April 15, 2024 with a $75 filing fee; or between April 16, 2024 and July 1, 2024, with a $250 fee. Mailed reports are considered filed on the date they are postmarked. Online filings must be submitted by midnight of the deadline day.

How do I make out the check?

Make checks or money orders payable to Colorado Department of Local Affairs. Write the file and report number(s) on your check. Remove the check stub. Please attach the check or money order to the annual report(s) with a paper clip. Do not send cash or credit card information. If you have more than one report, you may pay for all with a single check. The canceled check, with file and report numbers on it, will serve as your receipt.

Online filing allows you to pay with a credit card or e-check. (There may be a processing fee.)

Where should I mail the report?

1313 N. Sherman Street, Room 419
Division of Property Taxation
Denver, Colorado 80203

If you would like confirmation that your report has been mailed on time, we suggest you send it by certified mail. We do not send a confirmation of your filing.

What if the property has been sold?

If sold during 2024: you must file this report with the appropriate fee to retain your exemption up to the date of sale.

If sold prior to 2024: return the report without a fee and state when the property was sold.

What happens if I miss the filing deadline?

If you do not submit your 2024 Annual Report by July 1, 2024, your exemption will be forfeited. To regain the exemption from the forfeiture date, you will have to file a new application and petition the State Board of Equalization for a waiver of the filing deadline. If you file a new application after forfeiture, and we grant exemption, it will only be effective from the date the new application is filed.

Instructions by Section

Section 1: Owner Name and Mailing Address

This is the owner’s address for official correspondence from our office. Review the Owner Name and Mailing Address, and make corrections as necessary. It is the owner’s responsibility to notify us of address changes. If the owner’s name has been changed, please provide documentation, such as a Certificate of Amendment from the Colorado Secretary of State’s office. (Such certificates should also be recorded in any county where the organization owns real property.)

If your organization has recently acquired the property from the owner listed in this space, please do not file this form. Exemption does not transfer from one owner to another. Your organization must obtain its own exemption for the property. Application forms are available on the Forms Index page.

Section 3: Legal Description of Exempt Property

Review the legal description. It may be in abbreviated form, but generally it should be the same as it appears on the records of the county assessor. If it does not sufficiently identify the property, explain any corrections needed, but do not add property. If your organization has acquired additional real property (land and/or buildings), or has acquired personal property at additional locations, you must file an Application for Exemption for that additional property. Under the legal description is the parcel address. Make corrections as needed.

Section 4: Estimated Exempt Property Values

This reflects the estimated market value of the property as of our last update. These values are estimates only. If you wish, you may update the values. As the values are estimates we suggest you indicate only changes of 10% or more. If your exemption is for personal property only and the value of your personal property is under $52,000 and will stay under that amount, you are exempt under C.R.S. 39-3-119.5. If this applies to you, call our office at 303-864-7780. Personal property includes, for example, office equipment and furniture. Real property refers to land and structures.

Section 5: Contact Information

Enter the name, daytime phone number, and email address of a person with authority to answer questions regarding the property.

Section 6: Property is Exempt as Owned and Used for:

This section indicates the statute under which the property was granted exemption and notes which sections of the form you must complete. If you feel that the property qualifies for exemption under a different statute, please attach a detailed explanation.

Section 7: Description and Use of Property

List each building on the subject property and describe all uses of each building during the previous calendar year. If the exemption is for "Personal Property Only," write "Personal Property" and list all uses of that personal property. Please be more specific than just ‘charitable purposes’ or ‘nonprofit purposes’. We should get a good idea of how the property is being used.

If any or all of the property is not being used, please explain and include the date the property was last used.

If the property has been sold, see “What if the Property Has Been Sold?” on the first page of these instructions.

Section 8: Schools

Complete this section if Section 6 indicates that your property was granted exemption under the school statutes or if you believe the property should be exempt under the school statutes (C.R.S. 39-3-107 and 39-1-102 (15.5)). If you operate only a child care center and that child care center doesn’t meet the requirements of C.R.S. 39-1-102(15.5)(a)(II)(B), you must complete Section 11. 39-1-102(15.5)(a)(II)(B) requires that the owner be nonprofit, that it offer an educational program for not more than six hours per day, that it employ educators trained in preschool through eighth grade educational instruction, and that it be licensed by the appropriate state agency.

Section 9: Charitable Non-Residential Purposes

Complete this section if Section 6 indicates your property was granted exemption under the "charitable non-residential" statute, C.R.S. 39-3-108(1)(a), or if you believe the property should be exempt under that statute. “Non-Residential” facilities include facilities which allow for average stays of ninety days or less. (Rule IV.C.1)

Section 10: Charitable Licensed Health Care Facility

Complete this section if Section 6 indicates your property was granted exemption under the "charitable licensed health care facility" statute, C.R.S. 39-3-108(1)(b), or if you believe that the property should be exempt under that statute. Complete Section 9 for Mental Health Centers and FQHCs.

Section 11: Charitable Child Care Center

Complete this section if Section 6 indicates your property was granted exemption under the "charitable child care center" statute, C.R.S. 39-3-110, or if you believe the property should be exempt under that statute. If Section 6 indicates that the primary use of the property is for "school purposes," but you also operate a child care center at this location, and you answered “No” to either of the questions in Section 8E, you must also complete Section 11.

Section 12: Charitable Residential Purposes

Complete this section if Section 6 indicates your property was granted exemption under any of the statutes which begin with "Charitable Res -,” or if you believe the property should be exempt under one of those statutes.

Section 13: Was Property Used by Anyone Other Than Owner During Last Calendar Year?

All owners must complete Section 13. If your answer to the first question in Section 13 is “Yes,” then you must provide a list of all users of the property during the previous calendar year. (“User” means the organization or person directing the activity. It does not refer to mere participants attending the activity.) Your list of uses must include:

1. The names of all outside persons or groups who have used your property during the previous calendar year. Include uses by members of your organization that were not organization events.
2. The number of times that each of those persons or groups used the property during the previous calendar year. If the user had exclusive use of a portion of the property, write “EXC.”
3. The total number of hours of use by each user during the previous calendar year.
4. Indicate the amount of square footage used by the user.
5. If the owner received any money from the user (e.g., rental payments, donations, etc.), note the amount of income received from each user during the previous calendar year. If no income was received from a user, write "NONE.”
6. The total square footage of all improvements on this parcel.

If you need more space to report additional users, attach an additional sheet.

Section 14: Other Income Derived from the Property

State the amount of any other income received that has not been listed in any previous section.

Section 15: Signature and Verification

This report must be signed, under penalty of perjury in the second degree, by the owner or an authorized agent of the owner. In addition to the signature, type or print the name of the person signing the report, the person’s title, and the date signed.

• Please complete every section that applies to your organization. Incomplete responses could result in this report being returned to you.
• Please notify us immediately of mailing address changes to ensure timely delivery of official correspondence.
• If you have additional questions call our office at 303-864-7780. Please have your file number and report number handy. They are in the upper right hand corner of the annual report.