Are Cleaning Services Taxable in Texas? Exemptions & Rates

Cleaning services are taxable in Texas in almost every common situation. The state treats building and grounds cleaning as a taxable real property service, so the 6.25% state sales tax plus up to 2% in local taxes applies to the total charge, including both labor and materials.¹ Residential cleaning is taxed the same as commercial cleaning. The exemptions exist but are narrower than most people expect.

What Cleaning Work Texas Taxes

The Comptroller’s office is explicit that tax is due on the charge to clean a home, office, warehouse, garage, restaurant, or any other building, or a swimming pool. The taxable list runs through most of what cleaning companies actually do: window washing, floor and wall cleaning, chimney and duct cleaning, trash pickup on the premises, restroom cleaning and restocking, and pressure washing of buildings, sidewalks, and parking lots.²

Pool Maintenance

Pool cleaning and maintenance is taxable on both residential and commercial property. That covers testing water, acid washing, adding and balancing chemicals, cleaning and changing filters, and vacuuming.² A homeowner paying someone to maintain a backyard pool owes sales tax on the service.

Carpet Cleaning

Carpet cleaning itself is taxable in homes and businesses. Two related services are not: water extraction from residential carpets, and carpet repairs in residential properties. If a single job combines taxable cleaning with nontaxable water extraction, how the invoice is written matters. A lump-sum charge is presumed fully taxable when the taxable portion exceeds 5% of the total. Separately stating a reasonable charge for the taxable work on the invoice avoids that result.¹

When Cleaning Is Not Taxed

A Housekeeper You Employ Directly

There is no tax on the charges of a self-employed person who provides traditional household services like housekeeping, babysitting, or cooking, but only when that person is an employee of the household and does not act as a subcontractor for a third party such as a maid service.² The underlying rule carves “domestic services such as those of a baby-sitter, maid or cook employed by a private household” out of taxable building cleaning.³

So an individual housekeeper you hire to work directly for your household does not charge sales tax. The moment you hire a cleaning company, or an individual sent by a maid service, sales tax applies. The exemption also does not reach other real property services at a residence: landscaping or pool cleaning by a self-employed individual is still taxable.²

Cleaning During New Residential Construction

Cleaning services purchased by a homebuilder as part of a contract to build a new residential structure are not taxable. The exemption covers cleaning done during or immediately after construction of a new home, apartment complex, condominium, nursing home, or retirement home, and the homebuilder can be a contractor, a developer, or a homeowner acting as their own general contractor.⁴

It does not apply to new commercial construction, and it does not apply to renovations, repairs, or interior remodeling of existing residential property. Re-roofing a house or renovating a garage does not qualify. Hotels, motels, hospitals, prisons, and recreational vehicle parks are specifically excluded from the definition of residential structures, so cleaning during construction of those is taxable.⁴

Exempt Organizations

Texas state and local government agencies, school districts, and other political subdivisions can purchase cleaning services tax-free by law, and do not need to apply. Nonprofit organizations, including religious organizations, can qualify but must apply with the Comptroller and receive exempt status before buying tax-free, and the purchase must relate to the organization’s exempt purpose.⁵ An exempt customer should provide a valid exemption certificate, which the cleaning business keeps on file for at least four years after the last sale it covers.

How Much Tax You Charge

The state sales tax rate is 6.25%. Local taxing jurisdictions — cities, counties, special purpose districts, and transit authorities — can add up to 2% more, for a maximum combined rate of 8.25%.⁶ The combined rate depends on where the service is performed, so a job in downtown Houston and a job in an unincorporated rural area can carry different rates.

If You Run the Cleaning Business

Any business that sells taxable services in Texas must obtain a sales tax permit from the Comptroller before collecting tax. You can apply through the Texas Online Tax Registration system or by mailing a completed AP-201 form.⁷

The Comptroller assigns a filing frequency based on expected tax volume and notifies you by letter.⁶ Monthly filers report by the 20th of the following month. Quarterly filers report by April 20, July 20, October 20, and January 20 for the preceding quarter. Annual filers report by January 20 for the previous calendar year. If a due date falls on a weekend or legal holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day.⁸

Late payment carries a 5% penalty from 1 to 30 days past due, jumping to 10% after 30 days. If payment still has not been made after the Comptroller sends a Notice of Tax Due, another 10% is added, for a total of 20%. Interest begins accruing on the 61st day past the due date at a variable rate the Comptroller sets each year. A flat $50 penalty applies to each late report, even if no tax was due that period.⁹

Sales tax records must be kept for at least four years from the date each record is created, and longer if tax, penalties, or interest may still be assessed or an administrative hearing or legal proceeding is pending. Records should show total gross receipts from all sales and taxable services, total purchases of taxable items, and all sales tax collected during each reporting period.¹⁰

1
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Carpet Cleaning and Related Services
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Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Cleaning and Janitorial Services
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Legal Information Institute. 34 Texas Admin Code 3.356 – Real Property Service
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Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Homebuilders and Real Property Services
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Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Nonprofit and Exempt Organizations – Purchases and Sales
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Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Sales and Use Tax
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Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Texas Sales and Use Tax Frequently Asked Questions – Obtaining a Sales Tax Permit
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Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Texas Sales and Use Tax Frequently Asked Questions
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Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Penalties for Past Due Taxes
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Legal Information Institute. 34 Texas Admin Code 3.281 – Records Required