Oil Tank Removal Grants In New Jersey
The short answer is that New Jersey has one state fund for heating oil tanks, it has been closed to clean tanks since 2011, and applications for leaking tanks are accepted but queued.
Below is where each route stands, quoted from NJDEP rather than summarised, so you can check every line against the source.
Last checked 2026-08-26.
A Written Quote For Your Property
The address, the rough age of the house and where you think the tank sits are enough to start. You do not need paperwork or a tank size to ask.
The Fund Behind The Word Grant
There is one state fund people mean when they ask about grants: the Petroleum Underground Storage Tank Remediation, Upgrade and Closure Fund. It was signed into law on 30 August 1997, it sits within the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, and it is administered jointly with NJDEP. The statute has been amended four times, in 2003, 2006, 2007 and 2009.
It was created to provide financial assistance to eligible owners and operators of leaking petroleum underground storage tanks. The word leaking is doing a great deal of work in that sentence, and it is the line the whole subject turns on.
Source: NJDEP UST Fund. Checked 2026-08-26.
Clean Tanks Have Had No Route Since 2011
If your tank has not discharged, there is no state money available to take it out. NJDEP states that effective 3 May 2011 the UST Fund will no longer accept or process non-leaking UST Fund applications due to insufficient funds.
That date has not moved in fifteen years. A homeowner removing a sound tank ahead of a sale, or because an insurer asked, is paying for that work themselves.
Source: NJDEP UST Fund. Checked 2026-08-26.
Leaking Tank Applications Join A Queue
For a tank that has discharged, the position is different but not straightforwardly better. Applications are still accepted. They are simply not looked at yet.
NJDEP states that new applications for leaking unregulated USTs, which includes all residential heating oil USTs, will continue to be accepted and acknowledged but shall not be reviewed or processed at this time, that they are date stamped on receipt and processed when funding becomes available, and that there is currently a one year wait on all new applications.
Supplemental funding is treated separately. Where an application has already been approved and funding provided, NJDEP states a supplemental request for that application will be processed, assuming sufficient funding is available.
Source: NJDEP UST Fund. Checked 2026-08-26.
What NJDEP Says About No Cost Advertising
The clearest statement on this subject is the state's own, and it is published on the UST Fund page rather than buried in a rule.
The Department of Environmental Protection is aware that contractors advertise that state funding is available and that tank removal and remediation can be done at no cost to homeowners. However, the UST Fund has never guaranteed funding for applicants to this program.
Source: NJDEP UST Fund. Checked 2026-08-26.
The Cost Guide Changed In February 2026
One thing genuinely did change this year. The UST Fund Cost Guide moved to version 2.0, effective 1 February 2026. The version it replaced was dated 1 January 2010, so the guide the fund had been working to was sixteen years old.
The application forms and instructions moved to version 2.0 on the same date. If you are working from a downloaded form or a contractor's copy of the cost guide, check the version before you rely on it.
Source: NJDEP UST Fund. Checked 2026-08-26.
Certification Is A Condition Of Funded Work
Where the UST Fund is paying, the contractor question is settled by statute rather than preference. Under P.L. 2006, c.58, effective 3 October 2006, all contractors performing work on non-regulated underground storage tanks, including homeowner heating oil tanks, where the work is funded by the UST Fund, must be certified in accordance with N.J.A.C. 7:14B-13.
Source: NJDEP UST Fund. Checked 2026-08-26.
Grant And Funding Questions
Is there a New Jersey grant to remove my oil tank?
Not for a tank that has not leaked. NJDEP stopped accepting and processing non-leaking UST Fund applications on 3 May 2011 due to insufficient funds, and that has not changed.
My tank leaked. Can I still apply?
Yes. NJDEP states applications for leaking unregulated USTs, which includes all residential heating oil tanks, continue to be accepted and acknowledged. They are date stamped on receipt and processed when funding becomes available, with a stated one year wait on new applications.
Will the state pay before I do the work?
Treat that as no. NJDEP states plainly that the UST Fund has never guaranteed funding for applicants to the program, and applications for leaking tanks are not being reviewed at present.
Does the fund cover regulated tanks?
Regulated UST Fund applications stopped on 1 July 2010. The exception is a newly discovered, previously unregistered regulated tank, where an application may be filed within 18 months of the date of discovery.
Who do I contact about a UST Fund application?
NJDEP lists 609-984-2076 and srp_ustfund_gq@dep.nj.gov for UST Fund questions.
Does the cost guide version matter to me?
It does if you are applying. The UST Fund Cost Guide version 2.0 took effect on 1 February 2026, replacing a version dated 1 January 2010, and the application forms changed on the same date.
Ask About Your Own Property
General rules only go so far. Send the address and what you know and you get an answer about the property in front of you.
A Written Quote For Your Property
The address, the rough age of the house and where you think the tank sits are enough to start. You do not need paperwork or a tank size to ask.