Virginia · Tax exemption
VA Solar Property Tax Exemption
Removes a tax burden residential solar owners in Virginia would otherwise carry -- see what it covers, eligibility, and payback impact below.
- Property tax exempti…
- stated benefit
- Residential
- eligible customers
- 15 yr
- Virginia baseline payback
- 3
- other Virginia programs
What it means
In Virginia, a 6 kW system already pays back in about 15 years on ~$1,161/year of modeled savings, and the VA Solar Property Tax Exemption stacks on top of that, on top of any federal credit.
- Property tax e…
- stated benefit
- 15 yr
- baseline payback (pre-incentive)
- 4
- Virginia programs that stack
- full
- net-metering policy
Payback and savings are modeled from public NREL/EIA data; the program benefit is summarized from DSIRE and may change.
Program description
Virginia localities may exempt solar energy equipment from property taxes.
Program at a glance
- Program type
- Tax exemption
- Eligible customers
- Residential
- Stated benefit
- Property tax exemption (by locality)
- State electricity rate
- 13.8¢/kWh
- Virginia solar score
- 27/100
How Virginia compares to the U.S. average
Why this incentive matters more (or less) here - Virginia's solar fundamentals against the national average.
Source: NREL irradiance and U.S. EIA rates; payback modeled by PlainSolarData. Bars are scaled to the larger of the two values per metric.
Solar's trajectory in Virginia
The market this incentive operates in: total installed solar capacity in Virginia reported to the EIA.
Virginia's solar incentive stack
How this tax exemption sits among Virginia's 3 tracked programs, by type
- Tax exemption
Tax exemption
1 programs
- Net metering
Net metering
1 programs
- Rebate
Rebate
1 programs
What this shows Virginia tracks 3 incentive types; 1 are tax exemptions like this one, removing a cost solar owners would otherwise carry, on top of the state's other program types.
How this incentive fits Virginia's solar picture
The VA Solar Property Tax Exemption removes a tax burden solar owners would otherwise carry, one of Virginia's DSIRE-tracked solar incentive programs. Eligibility is scoped to residential customers, with a stated benefit of Property tax exemption (by locality). DSIRE lists no scheduled sunset, though enabling legislation and appropriations can still be revised year to year.
That baseline is slower than most states, which raises the stakes for every incentive on the table. Virginia averages 4.8 kWh/m²/day of usable sunlight and residential rates of 13.8¢/kWh, producing an estimated 8,410 kWh/year and $1,161 of annual utility offset on a typical 6 kW system costing $17,400. That baseline already implies a 15-year simple payback and a 25-year modeled net of roughly $11,625 before this incentive - every dollar this tax exemption delivers compresses that payback further.
A handful of other levers are worth checking alongside this one. Virginia has 4 solar incentive programs indexed in DSIRE, including adjacent options like VA Net Metering, Dominion Energy VA Community Solar. The state's net-metering policy is classified as full, which governs how excess generation is credited and often decides whether a given program is worth claiming for a specific household.
Your next step
- See Virginia's full solar profile, score, irradiance, rates, payback, and every program you can claim. Virginia solar data
- Run the savings calculator with your real bill to see how this incentive changes your own payback. ROI calculator
- Read how state and federal solar credits work together. Tax-credit guide
Estimates here are modeled from public data and are not financial advice; confirm program terms and your own eligibility before relying on a dollar figure.
Other Virginia incentives
Frequently asked questions
What is the VA Solar Property Tax Exemption?
How does the VA Solar Property Tax Exemption work?
Who is eligible for the VA Solar Property Tax Exemption?
How does this incentive affect solar ROI in Virginia?
Are there other solar incentives in Virginia?
Incentive data from the DSIRE (Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency); state solar economics from NREL and the U.S. EIA. See our methodology.