Connecticut Tax-Free Week: Dates, Eligible Items, and the $300 Cap

Connecticut’s tax-free week runs Sunday, August 16 through Saturday, August 22, 2026, and the state’s 6.35% sales tax is waived on most clothing and footwear priced under $300 per item. That cap is new: Public Act No. 26-68 raised it from $100, and the law also adds backpacks and cleated shoes to the list of qualifying goods for the first time.

When the Holiday Falls

The dates are set by formula, not by annual proclamation. The statute runs the holiday from the third Sunday of August through the following Saturday every year.¹ For 2026, that’s August 16 through August 22. The Department of Revenue Services posts an official confirmation each summer if you want to double-check closer to the date.²

What You Can Buy Tax-Free

The exemption covers clothing and footwear meant to be worn on or about the body, with each individual item priced under $300. The per-item limit is evaluated piece by piece, so four $80 shirts in one cart are all tax-free even though the total hits $320.¹

Everyday wear qualifies: pants, dresses, sweaters, socks, sneakers, boots, sandals, and both adult and children’s clothing. New for 2026, backpacks and athletic cleats also qualify, as long as they come in under $300. The DRS publishes a detailed reference list if you’re unsure about a specific item.³

What’s Still Taxable

Two categories stay taxable no matter the price. Accessories you carry rather than wear are out: jewelry, handbags, luggage, umbrellas, wallets, and watches.¹ Specialty athletic gear and protective equipment is also excluded, including items like football pads, ski boots, wet suits, work gloves, safety glasses, and sports helmets.³ The dividing line is whether the item is designed for a specific protective or athletic purpose rather than everyday wear.

How the $300 Cap Actually Works

Any single item priced at $300 or more is fully taxable. There’s no partial exemption. A $310 coat gets taxed on the full $310, not just the $10 over.¹ Items hovering just over the threshold are worth a second look for markdowns.

Coupons and Discounts

Eligibility is based on the final price after retailer-issued coupons and markdowns are applied. A $320 jacket brought down to $295 by a store coupon now qualifies for the exemption.²

Buy-One-Get-One Deals

On buy-one-get-one-free promotions, the threshold applies to the item you actually pay for. Buy a $150 pair of shoes and get a second pair free, and the paid pair is evaluated at its full $150. The retailer cannot split the charge across both pairs to drop each one under the cap, and the retailer handles use tax on the free item; the customer owes nothing extra.²

Online Orders, Layaway, and Rain Checks

The exemption isn’t limited to physical stores. Online, phone, and mail orders all qualify, from Connecticut-based and out-of-state retailers, as long as you pay during the holiday window. The payment date controls, not the delivery date. Order a qualifying item on Saturday, August 22 and have it ship the following week, and it’s still tax-free.²

Layaway follows the same logic in one direction only. Place a qualifying item on layaway during the holiday and it stays tax-free when you make the final payment later. Items placed on layaway before the holiday remain taxable even if you pick them up during the exempt week.

Rain checks don’t carry the exemption. If a store runs out of a qualifying item during tax-free week and hands you a rain check, you still owe tax when you come back to buy it. The holiday covers purchases completed and paid for within the dates themselves.²

Exchanges after the holiday are fine. Swap a $75 sweater you bought during the week for a different $75 sweater in October and no tax applies, as long as the replacement would itself have qualified.²

What Changed for 2026

Public Act No. 26-68 made three changes that take effect with the 2026 holiday. The per-item cap went from $100 to $300, bringing winter coats, dress shoes, and higher-end sneakers into the exemption. Athletic cleats, previously excluded as specialty footwear, now qualify under the $300 limit. Backpacks are eligible for the first time. The $300 figure actually mirrors the threshold Connecticut used when the holiday began in 2004, before lawmakers lowered it to $100 in 2015.¹

1
Justia. Connecticut Code 12-407e – Tax Suspended for One Week in August for Sales of Clothing or Footwear of Less Than One Hundred Dollars
2
Connecticut State Department of Revenue Services. Connecticut Sales Tax Free Week
3
Connecticut State Department of Revenue Services. Examples of Clothing and Footwear That Are Exempt During Sales Tax Free Week