Highland County, Virginia Tax Rates

Highland County Tax Rates - At a Glance

Highland County Tax Rates Summary (county rates from the Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 Local Tax Rates survey; Town of Monterey overlay shown separately)

Tax Type	County Rate (per $100)	Notes
Real Estate	$0.51	100% fair market value. Town of Monterey adds $0.17 (combined $0.68).
Personal Property (vehicles)	$2.75	Tangible personal property including vehicles. Town of Monterey adds $1.40.
Machinery & Tools	$1.00	Business machinery and tools. Town of Monterey adds $1.40.
Merchants' Capital	$1.00	Levied on merchants' inventory. Town of Monterey adds $1.40.
Sales Tax	5.3% (4.3% state + 1.0% local) - no regional district

The county real estate ($0.51), tangible personal property ($2.75), machinery and tools ($1.00), and merchants' capital ($1.00) rates, and the Town of Monterey overlay (real estate $0.17, personal property $1.40, machinery and tools $1.40, merchants' capital $1.40), are from the Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 Local Tax Rates survey - the canonical statewide source. The PPTRA relief percentage, the property tax due dates, any separately set motor-vehicle rate, the late-payment penalty and interest, the reassessment cycle, and the elderly and disabled relief income and net-worth thresholds are pending direct confirmation - see Official Sources below.

Vehicle Personal Property (Car) Tax

Rate and Classification

Highland County taxes tangible personal property, including motor vehicles, at $2.75 per $100 of assessed value county-wide, per the Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 survey. Property located inside the Town of Monterey adds a town personal property levy of $1.40 per $100. Virginia localities generally assess vehicles at their National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) value as of January 1 each year.

Due Date and Filing

Personal property tax is paid to the Highland County Treasurer, who can be reached at (540) 468-2265. The specific personal property due date and the filing deadline with the Commissioner of the Revenue are pending direct confirmation. The exact late-payment penalty and interest are also 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: Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 Local Tax Rates survey (personal property $2.75; Monterey +$1.40) and Highland County Commissioner of the Revenue (highlandcova.org), verified August 2026. For a deeper explanation of PPTRA, see our Virginia PPTRA explained guide. The PPTRA percentage, the due dates, any separately set motor-vehicle rate, the vehicle license fee, and the exact late-payment penalty and interest are pending direct confirmation.

Real Estate Tax

Rate and Assessment

Highland County's real estate tax rate is $0.51 per $100 of assessed value, per the Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 survey. 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 $2,040 per year at this rate; property inside the Town of Monterey adds the town's $0.17 per $100 levy, bringing the combined rate to $0.68. 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 paid to the Highland County Treasurer, whose office is in Monterey (P.O. Box 512); the Treasurer can be reached at (540) 468-2265. The specific real estate due dates and the late-payment penalty and interest are pending direct confirmation.

Exemptions and Relief Programs

Highland County administers real estate tax relief for the elderly and disabled, a land use taxation program for qualifying agricultural and forestal land, and 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: Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 survey (real estate $0.51; Monterey +$0.17) and Highland County Commissioner of the Revenue (highlandcova.org), verified August 2026. The elderly and disabled relief thresholds, the due dates, and the reassessment cycle are pending direct confirmation with the Commissioner of the Revenue.

Business Equipment, Machinery, and Tools

Highland County levies a machinery and tools tax of $1.00 per $100 and a merchants' capital tax of $1.00 per $100, both lower than the tangible personal property rate, per the Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 survey. The Town of Monterey adds its own $1.40 machinery and tools and $1.40 merchants' capital levies within the town limits. Business personal property is filed with the Commissioner of the Revenue.

Source: Virginia Department of Taxation TY2025 Local Tax Rates survey; machinery and tools ($1.00) and merchants' capital ($1.00) confirmed in Table 1 for Highland County, and the Monterey town overlays in Table 3.

Sales Tax

Rate and Composition

The combined sales tax rate in Highland County is 5.3%: the 4.3% Virginia state rate plus the 1.0% standard local rate. Highland 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.

Highland 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)

Highland County: Virginia's Switzerland

Highland County sits high in the Allegheny Mountains on the West Virginia border, the least-populous county in Virginia with roughly 2,300 residents and the highest mean elevation of any county east of the Mississippi River - which earned it the nickname "Virginia's Switzerland." Its economy is rooted in agriculture, forestry, and tourism: the county is famous for maple syrup and the annual Highland Maple Festival each March, along with trout fishing, the George Washington National Forest, and the Confederate Breastworks. The county seat and only incorporated town is Monterey, which levies its own town rates. Highland borders Bath County to the south, Augusta County to the east, and Rockingham County to the northeast.

How Highland County Compares Across Virginia

Highland County's $0.51 county real estate rate sits well below the Virginia statewide median of roughly $0.70. Its $2.75 personal property (vehicle) rate is in the typical mid-range for Virginia counties. Its machinery and tools and merchants' capital rates, at $1.00 each, are relatively modest. See the full Virginia property tax comparison and car tax comparison for exact rankings.