County filing guide
How to appeal your property tax in Santa Barbara County
Regular decline-in-value appeals. Supplemental and escape assessments have different deadlines.
Filing options
Filing instructions
Informal review
The county's 2026 informal review period is July 1, 2026–November 16, 2026. An informal request does not extend the formal appeal deadline.
Open the Assessor's Forms Library. Under Applications/Claims/Requests, select Request for Informal Review.
Open Request for Informal Review in the forms library. Read the current notice and select this form to download the 2026 Real Property Request for Informal Assessment Review. The due date is November 16, 2026. If you cannot open it, call 805-568-2550 for a copy.
Enter your name, mailing address, phone, email, property type, parcel number and property address. State your opinion of market value as of January 1, 2026, and provide comparable-sales information. Follow the form's instructions for recent listings or appraisals, property-condition issues and income-producing property. Review the request, then sign and date it.
Email the completed form and supporting documents to [email protected] by November 16, 2026. Keep a copy and ask for receipt confirmation.
If the Assessor has not resolved your disagreement before the formal deadline, file a separate formal appeal by November 30, 2026 to preserve your hearing rights.
Formal appeal online
The regular 2026 filing window is July 2, 2026–November 30, 2026.
Open Santa Barbara's Assessment Appeal e-filing portal. Existing users enter their email and password and select Log in. New users select Register as a new user or re-register if forgot password, enter their email on the next page and select Continue, then follow the portal's registration instructions.
Log in or choose the new-user registration link. 
The public registration page asks for an email before Continue. Follow the portal's instructions to complete the application. Have your parcel number, applicant contact details, property address, assessed values and opinion of value ready.
For an annual market-value dispute, identify Regular Assessment and Decline in Value. Complete any representative authorization that applies and read the instructions for the written-findings and refund-claim questions.
Review the application and finish electronic submission and credit-card payment before the deadline. The standard non-refundable fee is $65 per year and per parcel or appraisal unit; properties assessed above $30 million have a $1,000 fee. Keep the submitted application and payment confirmation.
Save your supporting evidence for the hearing or an Assessor request; the application instructions say not to attach hearing evidence to the initial application. Continue paying your tax bills on time.
After you file
Informal review
Keep your request confirmation and any correspondence from the Assessor. Check the formal appeal deadline above when considering a separate appeal.
Formal appeal
Keep a copy of your application and filing confirmation. Watch for notices from the Clerk of the Board and follow the county’s instructions for any hearing.
Open my appeal plans →Contacts & sources
Clerk of the Board
Runs the formal appeal
805-568-2247 · appeals page ↗
105 E. Anapamu Street, Room 407, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
This guide covers the regular decline-in-value appeal; supplemental or escape assessment notices follow different deadlines. Every date and fee here was checked against official sources, listed below with the date checked. If the county's page ever differs from this guide, follow the county's page.
Sources
Informal sources
- Assessor's Forms Library and 2026 informal review filing-period notice — checked September 29, 2026. The notice confirms July 1–November 16, 2026 and the Assessor phone number. The library says to contact the office if a form cannot be located.
- BOE: Decline in Value—How It Works and Decline in Value FAQs — support the January 1 value review and separate formal appeal deadline.
- Current informal review notice and 2026 request form — opened from the live Forms Library October 6, 2026. The notice confirms July 1–November 16; the form confirms the fields, signature, November 16 due date and email submission with supporting documents. The county form requests applicable appraisal, comparable-sales, condition and income evidence; no informal fee is stated. An annotated menu screenshot is beneath informal Step 1. No request was submitted.
Informal review
- https://www.countyofsb.org/acr-assessor-forms-library?contentId=11b72f8c-c761-49d7-b864-3541e091e7b3 · “The filing period will be July 1, 2026 – November 16, 2026.” (checked October 7, 2026)
Formal sources
- County's 2026 filing announcement and BOE's 2026 county filing periods — checked September 29, 2026. Confirm the July 2–November 30 regular window; the county announcement directs owners to register and e-file.
- County application and submission protocol — checked September 29, 2026. Confirms actual electronic filing, the portal URL, fee amounts and credit-card payment. Also supports the application preparation and evidence instructions above.
- Clerk's Assessment Appeals page — official starting point for county information. The older case-status site is not the application portal.
- This guide covers a regular annual decline-in-value appeal. Supplemental, escape and other notice-based assessments have different filing rules. The public login and email registration pages were inspected and captured October 6, 2026; annotated screenshots are beneath formal Step 1. No email or other data was entered. Registration after Continue, authenticated application screens, checkout and confirmation were not inspected; later steps remain based on the county's published protocol. No account was created, application filed or payment made.
Formal appeal window
- https://www.boe.ca.gov/proptaxes/pdf/lta26023.pdf · “The regular appeals filing period in each county will begin on July 2, 2026, and will end on September 15, 2026, for those counties where the Assessor mails assessment notices to all taxpayers with property on the secured roll by August 1, 2026. For counties where assessment notices are not mailed by August 1, 2026, the filing period is extended to November 30, 2026.” (checked July 10, 2026)
Filing fee
- https://www.countyofsb.org/assessment-appeals-0 · “A non-refundable processing fee of $65.00 per parcel or appraisal unit with an assess value under $30 million is due at the time of filing an application for changed assessment. For parcels or appraisal units with an assessed value of over $30 million, a $1,000 non-refundable processing fee is due at the time of filing and application for changed assessment.” (checked July 11, 2026)
Filing address
- https://www.countyofsb.org/assessment-appeals-0 · “Applications and required processing fees may be hand-delivered or mailed to the Clerk of the Board at the following address: County of Santa Barbara Clerk of the Board 105 E. Anapamu Street, Room 407 Santa Barbara, CA 93101” (checked July 11, 2026)
Filing channels
- https://content.civicplus.com/api/assets/93e49c01-ed9d-40c0-8774-a712086451ba · “Electronic Filing: Applicants may submit documentation and fees through the official Santa Barbara County Assessment Appeal Portal.” (checked July 11, 2026)
Common questions about appealing in Santa Barbara County
When is the deadline to appeal in Santa Barbara County?
The deadline to file a formal appeal in Santa Barbara County for the 2026-27 tax year is November 30, 2026. Filing opened July 2, 2026.
The Assessor takes informal review requests from July 1 to November 16, 2026.
What does it cost to file an appeal in Santa Barbara County?
The county filing fee for a formal appeal is $65 for an owner-occupied home.
Informal review or formal appeal: which one first?
Santa Barbara County offers both: an informal review with the Assessor, and a formal appeal filed with the Clerk of the Board (due November 30, 2026).
The state's own guidance says to talk to the Assessor's office first: if their staff finds an error, they can lower the roll directly and you may never need to file. Missing an informal review costs you nothing; missing the formal deadline costs you the year.
Which form do I file, and where?
The formal appeal uses the state's application form, BOE-305-AH ↗.
Santa Barbara County accepts the formal appeal online. File online through the county's appeals portal ↗.
The Clerk of the Board's address is 105 E. Anapamu Street, Room 407, Santa Barbara, CA 93101.
Check the Clerk of the Board's appeals page ↗ or call 805-568-2247 before you file.
How long does an appeal take?
You get written notice at least 45 days ahead, hearings are open to the public (you can watch one first), and boards are expected to decide within two years of filing. You can still settle at any point before your date.
Do homeowners actually get their assessments lowered?
4,263 homes in Santa Barbara County had temporarily reduced assessments in tax year 2024-25.