Craig County, Virginia Tax Rates

Craig County Tax Rates - At a Glance

Craig County Tax Rates Summary (real estate and personal property confirmed on the county's official page; machinery and tools and merchants' capital from the Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 survey)

Tax Type	County Rate (per $100)	Notes
Real Estate	$0.52 (2026: $0.56)	100% fair market value. TY2025 survey $0.52; county's 2026 page shows $0.56. Two installments due June 5 and December 5.
Personal Property (vehicles)	$3.50	Tangible personal property including vehicles - among Virginia's higher rates. Due December 5.
Machinery & Tools	$3.50	Business machinery and tools (TY2025 survey).
Merchants' Capital	$1.75	Levied on merchants' inventory (TY2025 survey).
Sales Tax	5.3% (4.3% state + 1.0% local) - no regional district

The real estate rate ($0.56 for 2026) and the personal property rate ($3.50) are confirmed on the Craig County Treasurer's official Real Estate & Personal Property Taxes page. The Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 Local Tax Rates survey - the canonical statewide source used across our comparison tables and map - lists real estate at $0.52, tangible personal property at $3.50, machinery and tools at $3.50, and merchants' capital at $1.75. The June 5 and December 5 real estate installments, the December 5 personal property due date, and the 10% late-payment penalty are confirmed on the county's page. The PPTRA relief percentage, any separately set motor-vehicle rate, the assessment/reassessment cycle, the current-year Town of New Castle rates, and the elderly and disabled relief thresholds are pending direct confirmation - see Official Sources below.

Vehicle Personal Property (Car) Tax

Rate and Classification

Craig County taxes tangible personal property, including motor vehicles, at $3.50 per $100 of assessed value - among the higher personal property (car) tax rates in Virginia. The rate is confirmed on the county's official 2026 page and matches the Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 survey. Virginia localities generally assess vehicles at their National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) value as of January 1 each year. The same $3.50 rate applies to business machinery and tools.

Due Date and Filing

Personal property tax is due December 5. Tax bills are mailed the first week of October. Unpaid balances carry a 10% late-payment penalty. Payments are made to the Craig County Treasurer, who can be reached at 540-864-5010. The personal property filing deadline with the Commissioner of the Revenue is pending direct confirmation.

PPTRA Relief

Qualifying personal-use vehicles receive Virginia's Personal Property Tax Relief (PPTRA) credit under Code of Virginia § 58.1-3524 on the first $20,000 of value. The Commissioner of the Revenue administers PPTRA relief locally; the specific current-year relief percentage is pending direct confirmation with the Commissioner of the Revenue.

Source: Craig County Treasurer - Real Estate & Personal Property Taxes page (craigcountyva.gov; personal property $3.50) and the Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 survey, verified September 2026. For a deeper explanation of PPTRA, see our Virginia PPTRA explained guide. The PPTRA percentage, any separately set motor-vehicle rate, the vehicle license fee, and the personal property filing deadline are pending direct confirmation.

Real Estate Tax

Rate and Assessment

The Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 survey lists Craig County's real estate tax rate at $0.52 per $100 of assessed value; the county's official page shows the 2026 rate increased to $0.56 per $100. Real estate is taxed at 100% of fair market value as the Virginia Constitution requires. On a $400,000 home, the county real estate tax works out to about $2,240 per year at the 2026 rate. The Board of Supervisors sets the rate each spring during the budget process; the county's general reassessment cycle is pending direct confirmation.

Due Date and Payment

Real estate tax is billed in two installments due June 5 and December 5, and tax bills are mailed the last week of April. Unpaid balances carry a 10% late-payment penalty. Payments are made to the Craig County Treasurer at 108 Court Street in New Castle; the Treasurer can be reached at 540-864-5010.

Town of New Castle

Craig County's only incorporated town, New Castle (the county seat), levies a small town tax on top of county rates. The Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 survey (Table 3) lists a town real estate add-on of $0.04 per $100 and a merchants' capital add-on of $0.50 per $100 for New Castle; the current-year town rates should be confirmed with the town. Residents of the unincorporated parts of the county pay county rates only.

Exemptions and Relief Programs

Craig County administers real estate tax relief for the elderly and disabled and a land use taxation program for qualifying agricultural and forestal land, along with the state PPTRA program through the Commissioner of the Revenue's office. Under Virginia Code § 58.1-3219.5, a veteran rated 100% service-connected permanently and totally disabled is exempt from real estate tax on a principal residence, a benefit that extends to a qualifying surviving spouse. The income and net-worth thresholds for the local elderly and disabled program are pending direct confirmation.

Source: Craig County Treasurer - Real Estate & Personal Property Taxes page (craigcountyva.gov; 2026 real estate $0.56) and the Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 survey (real estate $0.52), verified September 2026. The elderly and disabled relief thresholds, the reassessment cycle, and the current-year Town of New Castle rates are pending direct confirmation.

Business Equipment, Machinery, and Tools

Craig County levies a machinery and tools tax of $3.50 per $100, the same rate as tangible personal property, and a merchants' capital tax of $1.75 per $100, per the Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 survey. The business personal property filing deadline with the Commissioner of the Revenue is pending direct confirmation.

Source: Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 Local Tax Rates survey; machinery and tools ($3.50) and merchants' capital ($1.75) confirmed in Table 1 for Craig County.

Sales Tax

Rate and Composition

The combined sales tax rate in Craig County is 5.3%: the 4.3% Virginia state rate plus the 1.0% standard local rate. Craig County is not part of any regional sales tax district, per the Virginia Department of Taxation, so it sits in the statewide baseline tier along with its western Virginia neighbors.

Craig County Sales Tax Rate Breakdown

Component	Rate
Virginia state rate	4.3%
Standard local rate	1.0%
Regional district	None
Combined rate	5.3%

Qualifying food and grocery items are subject to Virginia's reduced 1.0% rate.

Source: Virginia Department of Taxation - Retail Sales and Use Tax (tax.virginia.gov)

Craig County and the New Castle Valley

Craig County sits in the mountains of western Virginia, part of the Roanoke metropolitan area, one of the least populous counties in the Commonwealth with roughly 4,900 residents and no traffic light. Much of the county lies within the Jefferson National Forest along Craig Creek and Johns Creek, and the county is known for its trout streams, the historic New Castle courthouse square, and its rural, agricultural character. The county seat and only incorporated town is New Castle. Craig borders Botetourt County to the east, Roanoke County to the southeast, Montgomery County to the south, Giles County to the west, and Alleghany County to the northwest.

How Craig County Compares Across Virginia

Craig County's $0.52 TY2025 real estate rate sits below the Virginia statewide median of roughly $0.70, but its $3.50 personal property (vehicle) rate is among the highest in Virginia - most counties tax vehicles at $2 to $4 per $100, and Craig sits at the top of that band. See the full Virginia property tax comparison and car tax comparison for exact rankings.