The final rules, and four things that changed

A proposed version of 19 RCNY Chapter 62 was published in the City Record on June 9, 2026. A public hearing followed on July 9, 2026, and the rules portal records 35 online comments. The final rule was adopted on July 14, 2026, effective immediately under Charter section 1043(f)(1)(d).

What changed between proposed and final?

1. Documentation for month-to-month renters. The final rule added documentation pathways for renters under month-to-month lease or sublease agreements, and for spouses of owners, under additional rental documents in 19 RCNY 62-01. The statute's own term still stands: a lessee qualifies under a bona fide lease negotiated at arm's length with a term of not less than one year, so the month-to-month pathway rests on the rule rather than the statute. (Corrected September 10, 2026. This entry first said there was no one-year lease requirement.)
2. Collective sole beneficiaries. Multiple individuals may collectively be the sole current beneficiaries of a trust, and contingent or future interests do not automatically disqualify. Multi-tier entity structures still cannot establish primary residence.
3. A one-year hardship continuation. Under 19 RCNY 62-06(b)(3), primary residency is deemed to continue for one year immediately following death, or during a continuous hospitalization or a temporary nursing home or rehabilitation stay, with proof of the event and of the prior residency.
4. The anti-avoidance lease clarification. A lease is not arm's length if circumstances indicate a reasonable possibility that it was entered into primarily to avoid the surcharge. A lessee or sublessee must also be a natural person, so an LLC tenant cannot establish primary residency.

One more, easy to miss

Owners may file an amended return before appealing. That is a final-rule change, and it matters to anyone whose filed address is the reason a notice arrived.