Florida Sales and Use Tax on Vehicles and Other Property

Florida charges 6% state sales tax on a vehicle purchase, plus a county discretionary surtax between 0% and 2% that applies only to the first $5,000 of the price.¹² What you actually owe depends on the county you register in, whether you traded in a vehicle, whether the price includes a manufacturer rebate, and where the sale took place.

The Rate and the $5,000 Surtax Cap

The state rate is a flat 6% on the sales price. County surtax rates for 2026 range from 0% in counties such as Citrus and Collier to 2% in Hamilton County.³ The important break for car buyers: on a single item of tangible personal property, the county surtax applies only to the first $5,000.²

A worked example. Buy a $35,000 car in a county with a 1.5% surtax:

State tax: 6% of $35,000 = $2,100
County surtax: 1.5% of $5,000 = $75
Total sales tax: $2,175

The county rate never touches the remaining $30,000.

What Goes Into the Taxable Price

Dealer Fees

Florida taxes the total sales price, which includes separately itemized charges the dealer requires you to pay: preparation fees, closing fees, freight, delivery, and similar dealer costs passed on to the buyer. Fees required by state law for titling, licensing, or registering the vehicle are not taxable.⁴

Trade-Ins and Dealer Discounts

A trade-in reduces the taxable amount when the trade is part of the same dealer transaction. Buy a $30,000 car and trade in a vehicle worth $10,000, and you pay tax on $20,000. Dealer discounts and negotiated price cuts work the same way: the tax follows the reduced price.

Manufacturer Rebates

Manufacturer rebates do not lower the taxable price. Even when the rebate is applied at the point of sale, Florida calculates tax on the full pre-rebate figure.⁵ A $2,000 rebate on a $30,000 vehicle means you still owe tax on $30,000. This is the piece that most often surprises buyers.

The 80% Rule on Private Sales

If you buy from a private seller and the reported price is below 80% of the vehicle’s average loan value in the most recent reference price list, the Department of Revenue can calculate the tax on that average loan value instead of your reported price.¹ You can rebut this with a signed affidavit from both buyer and seller (or other substantial proof) confirming the actual price. If you legitimately paid below market, bring documentation to the tax collector’s office.

Leased Vehicles

Leases are taxed the same way. The 6% state rate and any county surtax apply to the lease payments, and the $5,000 surtax cap still limits the county portion.⁴⁶ The dealer collects and remits the tax, so it appears in your monthly payment rather than as a separate bill.

Buying a Vehicle Out of State

If you buy a vehicle outside Florida and bring it in, you owe Florida use tax at the same combined rate as an in-state purchase, unless an exemption applies.⁷

Florida gives you a dollar-for-dollar credit for sales tax you legally paid to the other state, including local taxes paid there. No reciprocal agreement is required; the credit applies to any U.S. state, the District of Columbia, or a U.S. territory.⁸ If the other state charged 4% and your Florida combined rate is 7%, you owe Florida the 3% difference. If the other state’s rate met or exceeded Florida’s, nothing more is due.⁷

There is also a longer-ownership exemption. Under Florida Administrative Code Rule 12A-1.007, property you owned and used in another state for at least six months before bringing it to Florida is generally presumed exempt from use tax.⁹ This mainly helps people relocating to Florida with a car they have already owned for a while.

Common Exemptions

Gifts

A vehicle given as a gift is exempt from sales tax if no money or other consideration changes hands and the recipient assumes no outstanding lien.¹⁰ The exemption is not limited to family. To claim it, complete the Sales Tax Exemption Certification on the title application and attach a sworn statement identifying the donor and confirming no payment was made. Any consideration, however the parties label it, defeats the exemption.

Transfers Between Spouses and From Estates

Transfers between spouses, and transfers from a decedent’s estate to an heir, are generally exempt from Florida sales and use tax.

Nonresident Purchasers

If you live in another state and buy a vehicle in Florida, you can pay tax at the lower of your home state’s rate or the Florida 6% rate. If your home state has no sales tax, you owe nothing to Florida. You must sign a notarized statement declaring that you will license the vehicle in your home state within 45 days of the sale.¹¹ The vehicle does not have to physically leave the state during that window; it just has to be titled elsewhere.

A restriction applies to business buyers. If a nonresident corporation or partnership makes the purchase and any officer, 10%-or-greater stockholder, or 10%-or-greater partner is a Florida resident, the partial exemption is available only if the vehicle is removed from Florida within 45 days and kept out for at least 180 days.¹¹

Military

Florida residents on military duty stationed outside the state can claim an exemption on a vehicle purchased out of state and later titled in Florida. The service member must certify that the vehicle will stay outside Florida for at least six months from the purchase date and will not enter the state at all during that period. A Certificate of Entitlement is filed with the application. A fraudulent claim carries a penalty of 200% of the unpaid tax and a possible third-degree felony charge.¹²

Nonresident service members stationed in Florida do not get a sales tax exemption on a vehicle purchase. They and their spouses or dependent children can, however, claim an exemption from the $225 initial registration fee by providing military orders and an out-of-state driver license.¹²

How and When You Pay

Dealer Purchases

The dealer collects the sales tax at the transaction and remits it to the state. Registration and titling happen at the County Tax Collector’s office, where the $225 initial registration fee also applies to most vehicles being registered in Florida for the first time.¹³

Private Sales

Pay the tax directly at the County Tax Collector’s office when you apply for the title transfer. Bring documentation of the purchase price. If your figure looks low against book value, expect the 80% rule to come up.

Out-of-State Purchases Where No Tax Was Collected

File Form DR-15MO, the Out-of-State Purchase Return, with the Florida Department of Revenue. Filing is quarterly. The tax is due on the first day of the month following the quarter in which you purchased the vehicle and becomes late after the 20th of that month. A February purchase, for example, means tax due April 1 and late after April 20.¹⁴ If the 20th is a weekend or holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day.

Late Payment Penalties

Miss the filing deadline and you face a 10% penalty on the unpaid tax, with a $50 minimum even if no tax is due.¹⁵ Interest also accrues at a floating rate that resets every six months. For the first half of 2026, that rate is 11% annually, or a daily factor of 0.000301370.¹⁶ Penalty and interest run together.

Getting Tax Back

Lemon Law Repurchases

If a manufacturer repurchases your vehicle under the Florida Lemon Law, you are entitled to a refund of the sales tax and surtax you originally paid. The manufacturer refunds the tax to you and then seeks reimbursement from the Department of Revenue by submitting the original sales invoice, a copy of the repurchase agreement, and proof of the refund.¹⁷ You don’t file for this refund yourself.

Total Loss Insurance Settlements

When an insurer settles a total loss based on the cost of a comparable replacement vehicle, the settlement must include applicable sales tax. The insurer can defer paying the tax portion until you actually buy the replacement and incur the obligation. In practice, you may get the main settlement first and the sales tax reimbursement later, once you show proof of the replacement purchase and the tax paid on it.

1
Florida Senate. Florida Statutes Chapter 212 Section 05
2
Florida Senate. Florida Code 212.054 – Discretionary Sales Surtax
3
Florida Department of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax Information for Calendar Year 2026
4
Florida Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax on Motor Vehicles
5
Florida Department of Revenue. Coupons, Discounts, Rebates
6
Florida Department of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax
7
The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 212.06
8
Florida Department of Revenue. Motor Vehicle Sales Tax Rates by State
9
Legal Information Institute. Florida Administrative Code Rule 12A-1.007
10
Florida Department of Revenue. Do I Have to Pay Sales Tax When I Transfer My Car Title if the Car Was Given to Me
11
The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 212.08 – Specified Exemptions
12
Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. FLHSMV Military Forms Packet
13
The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 320.072 – Initial Registration Fee
14
Florida Department of Revenue. Out-of-State Purchase Return
15
Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax
16
Florida Department of Revenue. Tax Information Publication 25ADM-03
17
Florida Department of Revenue. Application for Refund Sales and Use Tax – Form DR-26SN Instructions