Assembling the file, in order

1. Name the criterion. Which one person uses the property as a primary residence: the owner, a tenant or subtenant, the individuals who collectively hold a majority interest in the owning entity, an immediate family member, or the sole beneficiary of a trust? One is enough. If none does, the exemption is not your route.
2. Pull the base set for that person: the most recent federal or state income tax return showing the address, or a driver's license or other DMV-issued identification on its own; if neither exists, a voter identification card plus one other proof.
3. Add the path documents: the lease plus the tenant's own records, relationship certificates or affidavits, organizational documents plus an officer affidavit, or the trust agreement plus a trustee affidavit.
4. Check the address. The same address on every document, written the same way, unit designation included.
5. Check the dates. Status is judged as of January 5, 2026, the taxable status date for the 2026-27 tax year, so the file has to cover that date and not only the weeks since the notice arrived.
6. Upload through the portal at nyc.gov/npsurcharge using the unique security code printed on your notice, before the extended September 18, 2026 deadline.

What happens after?

DOF issues an initial determination. If it goes against you, the rule gives an appeal window of no later than 30 days after the date the notice of initial determination is transmitted, or, if none is transmitted, 30 days after the surcharge appears on the assessment roll. It runs in writing through the DOF electronic portal. There is no extension and no hardship waiver. The step by step response guide covers the filing itself.

Deadlines to hold

• September 18, 2026: the response deadline for every property type, extended by DOF on August 1, 2026.
• The notices printed August 21, 2026 (homes and condos) and August 24, 2026 (co-ops); those printed dates are superseded by the extension.

One warning worth carrying out of here: a value challenge is a different road. The NYC Tax Commission takes those on Form TC107, a Tax Commission determination controls and bars DOF reconsideration, and choosing that route replaces the direct exemption application to DOF. Do not end up there by accident.