Fulton County Property Tax Appeal: 45 Days, No Fee

A Fulton County homeowner appeals an assessment by filing with the Fulton County Board of Assessors within 45 days of the date on the annual Notice of Assessment, online at the assessor's site, by mail, or in person at one of the county's five assessor locations. There is no fee to appeal to the county Board of Equalization. On the appeal you choose one of three routes: a Board of Equalization hearing, non-binding arbitration on value only, or a hearing officer. A temporary tax bill still comes due while the appeal is open, and if the decision reduces your value, Georgia law protects that value from increases for the following years.

Who decides your appeal

The Fulton County Board of Assessors sets the value and receives the appeal. The county Boards of Equalization, panels of Fulton County property owners appointed for the purpose, hear most residential cases. The Georgia appeal guide explains the statewide rules and the complete homeowner's guide covers the evidence that wins anywhere; this page covers what is specific to Fulton County. Georgia assesses homes at 40 percent of fair market value (O.C.G.A. section 48-5-7), so the number to check on your notice is the fair market value line.

The 45-day deadline is on the notice

The Georgia Department of Revenue's instruction is to "submit your property tax appeal to the County Board of Tax Assessors within 45 days from the date the Assessment Notice was sent." Fulton County prints the resulting date on the notice and states: "You must file your appeal before the appeal deadline date printed on your notice." Count from the mailing date on the notice, not the day you opened it, and do not wait for the county to confirm receipt before the date passes.

Fulton County mails notices on its own schedule each spring or summer, so the deadline differs by year. If you cannot find your notice, the Board of Assessors' property search shows the current year's value and the notice date.

Three ways to file

Fulton County's page lists three: "You can file your appeal online at http://www.fultonassessor.org/ in person at any of the five Fulton County Tax Assessor locations listed below, or by mail." The state's uniform form is PT-311A. Whichever route you use, identify the property by parcel number or address, state the ground for the appeal (value, uniformity, taxability, or denial of an exemption), and choose how you want the case heard. What to write on the form walks through each field.

Choose your route on the form

Fulton County: "When filing your appeal you must choose one of the three options for appeal: 1. You may have a hearing before the Board of Equalization. 2. You can participate in a non-binding arbitration on the basis of your valuation only. 3. You may have your appeal heard in front of a Hearing Officer." For a home, the Board of Equalization is the usual choice: it hears every ground, costs nothing, and is designed for homeowners without a lawyer.

Whichever you pick, Fulton County reminds owners: "You will ONLY be able to appeal the assessed value of your home, not your property's estimated tax."

The temporary bill

Fulton County: "In the meantime, you may receive a temporary tax bill while your appeal is pending. You must pay that temporary bill or risk receiving additional penalties and fees." Neighboring Gwinnett County describes the statewide formula: the temporary bill is "the lesser of either 100 percent of the prior year value, or 85 percent of the most recent value." Pay it. The final bill is corrected after the decision.

After the decision

If the Board of Equalization rules against you, Fulton County's Boards of Equalization page states that the decision can be appealed to superior court within 30 days of the date the decision was mailed. That is a court filing; do you need a lawyer? covers when that step is worth it.

If the decision reduces your value, O.C.G.A. section 48-5-299(c) bars the county from raising it for the following successive tax years. Chatham County's Board of Assessors, describing the same statewide rule after House Bills 581 and 92, calls it a three-year freeze and notes two conditions: the value must actually be reduced by the appeal decision, and you or your authorized representative must attend the hearing. Filing a new appeal while the freeze is active may remove it. What happens after you file walks through the sequence.

Homestead exemption in the same window

Georgia's standard homestead exemption is $2,000 off county and school taxes (O.C.G.A. section 48-5-44), and the Department of Revenue now says owners "may apply up to the end of their 45-day window to appeal their notice of assessment." If you have not applied, do it with the appeal. The statewide floating homestead exemption under HB 581 also applies unless a jurisdiction opted out, and the tax bill must say if one did. Homestead exemption vs. appeal explains how the two combine.

Common questions

When were 2026 Fulton County notices mailed?

The date is printed on your notice, and the 45 days run from it. Fulton County does not publish one statewide date, so the notice itself, or the Board of Assessors' property search, is the source.

Is there a fee?

Not for an appeal to the Board of Equalization. O.C.G.A. section 48-5-311 sets none, and Fulton County charges none for that route. Arbitration and hearing officer routes may carry costs; check the county page before choosing them.

Do I have to attend the hearing?

To keep the 299(c) protection after a reduction, you or your authorized representative must attend. Drop Property Tax files the appeal, builds the comparable sales, and attends the hearing for you, with no fee unless the appeal wins; start with a free review.

Can I appeal because my neighbor's house is assessed lower?

Yes. Uniformity is one of the four grounds in Georgia. Bring the neighboring parcels' record cards and values from the Board of Assessors' site along with your own.