Florida’s sales tax exemption for solar energy systems permanently removes the state’s 6% sales tax from every piece of equipment used to collect, convert, store, or move solar energy. The exemption is written into Florida Statute 212.08 and applies to complete systems and to individual components sold separately.1The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 212.08 – Sales, Rental, Use, Consumption, Distribution, and Storage Tax; Specified Exemptions You don’t apply for it, and you don’t need a special tax status. If the equipment is certified, the dealer should leave the tax off the invoice.
What Equipment Qualifies
Florida law defines a solar energy system as the equipment and hardware used for collecting, transferring, converting, storing, or using solar energy for water heating, space heating, cooling, or any other application that would otherwise rely on a conventional energy source such as natural gas or electricity.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 212.02 – Tax on Sales, Use, and Other Transactions
The Florida Department of Revenue groups qualifying equipment into five categories:
- Collectors, including solar panels, photovoltaic modules, and thermal collectors
- Power conditioning equipment such as inverters, charge controllers, regulators, and wiring
- Storage units, including tanks, batteries, expansion tanks, and phase-change materials
- Structural hardware such as mounting racks, tracking devices, and supports
- Transfer equipment such as pumps, fans, heat exchangers, valves, pipes, and ducts
All of these are exempt whether you buy them individually or as part of a complete kit.3Florida Department of Revenue. Solar Energy Systems Sales and Use Tax Exemption
Batteries
Batteries qualify when they are part of a solar energy system. The Department of Revenue lists batteries, regulators, and mechanical housing under the storage unit category of exempt components.3Florida Department of Revenue. Solar Energy Systems Sales and Use Tax Exemption A standalone backup generator or a battery bought with no solar connection would not qualify.
The Certification Requirement
Every solar energy system manufactured or sold in Florida must meet standards set by the Florida Solar Energy Center, which operates under the University of Central Florida. The requirement comes from the Solar Energy Standards Act at Section 377.705 of the Florida Statutes.4The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 377.705 – Standards, Labels, and Guarantees for Solar Energy Equipment The center tests products, keeps a list of certified equipment, and sends that list to the Department of Revenue periodically.
There is one alternative to center testing: a licensed professional engineer can certify that the equipment meets the standards in the most recent Florida Building Code.4The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 377.705 – Standards, Labels, and Guarantees for Solar Energy Equipment
For a buyer, this rarely creates work. Established Florida solar dealers stock certified equipment as a matter of course. The place to check is when you’re buying from an out-of-state or general online retailer: confirm the product appears on the Florida Solar Energy Center’s certified list before assuming the exemption will apply.
How the Exemption Is Applied at Purchase
The exemption attaches to the product, not to the buyer. Once the Florida Solar Energy Center certifies a piece of equipment, that certification tells the Department of Revenue the item is tax-exempt.1The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 212.08 – Sales, Rental, Use, Consumption, Distribution, and Storage Tax; Specified Exemptions You do not present a certificate, sign a form, or apply for status. The dealer simply omits state sales tax from the qualifying line items.
Specialist solar installers know this. Problems tend to show up at general home improvement stores or online retailers whose systems are not configured for the exemption. If a seller is charging tax on solar components, point them to the Department of Revenue’s published guidance and ask that the tax be removed before you complete the purchase. It is easier to fix on the invoice than to chase later.
One note on local tax: some Florida counties add a discretionary sales surtax of 0.5% to 2.5% on top of the state rate. Whether that local surtax also comes off solar equipment can vary, so ask the dealer or your county tax office if you see any local tax on the invoice.
Getting a Refund If You Were Charged Tax
If sales tax was charged on qualifying solar equipment, file Form DR-26S (Application for Refund – Sales and Use Tax) with the Florida Department of Revenue to recover the overpayment.5Florida Department of Revenue. Tax Refunds Information Keep every receipt showing the tax you paid and a description of the equipment. You must file within three years of the date the tax was paid; miss that window and the right to a refund is gone.6Cornell Law Institute. Florida Administrative Code R. 12-26.003 – Application for Refund
The three-year deadline is firm. If you discover four years after a solar installation that the contractor charged sales tax on the panels, the Department of Revenue will reject the claim. Pull your invoices soon after any installation and confirm no state tax was billed on the exempt components.
What the Exemption Saves You
Florida’s state sales tax is 6%, applied to the retail price at the point of sale.7Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax On a residential solar installation with equipment costs of $15,000 to $30,000, the exemption removes $900 to $1,800 in state sales tax. On a larger commercial system, the dollar savings scale with the equipment price.
The savings appear on the invoice at purchase. There is no rebate to wait for and no separate tax return line to claim, which distinguishes this benefit from federal solar credits that operate through the IRS.
A Separate Break: Property Tax
The sales tax exemption is one of two solar tax benefits in Florida, and it helps to keep them straight. Under Section 193.624 of the Florida Statutes, the increase in a home’s value attributable to a renewable energy source device cannot be included in the property’s assessed value for property tax purposes.8The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 193.624 – Assessment of Residential Property That exemption applies to residential installations completed on or after January 1, 2013, and it works separately from the sales tax exemption discussed here. Commercial properties are not covered by the property tax provision.9Florida Senate. Florida Code 193.624 – Assessment of Residential Property Neither benefit requires an application; both attach automatically to qualifying equipment or improvements.