Your business has Florida sales tax nexus the moment it has either a physical footprint in the state or more than $100,000 in remote sales of tangible goods delivered into Florida during the prior calendar year. Either trigger makes you a “dealer” under Florida law and puts you on the hook to register, collect the 6% state tax plus any county surtax, and file returns on the schedule the Department of Revenue assigns. Getting the trigger right matters because Florida can assess back taxes to the date you actually started taxable activity, not the date you eventually noticed.
What Counts as a Physical Presence
Florida Statute 212.06 defines a dealer to include any person who maintains an office, warehouse, salesroom, or other place of business in Florida.1The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 212.06 – Dealer Defined Retail stores, administrative offices, and distribution centers all qualify. So does inventory sitting in a Florida fulfillment center, even if a third-party logistics company runs the space.
People create nexus too. Employees working in Florida, independent sales reps soliciting orders, and contractors performing installation or repair work can each establish the connection. Temporary activity like exhibiting at a trade show or delivering and setting up equipment may be enough if it involves soliciting sales or conducting business on the company’s behalf.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 212.0596 – Taxation of Mail Order Sales Owning or leasing tangible property physically in the state is another trigger. If your business touches Florida through people, property, or inventory, you almost certainly have a collection obligation, regardless of your sales volume.
The $100,000 Economic Nexus Threshold
Businesses with no physical presence in Florida still become dealers if their remote sales into the state exceeded $100,000 during the previous calendar year.3The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 212.0596 – Taxation of Remote Sales
The measurement is the sum of the sales prices of all taxable remote sales of tangible personal property delivered into Florida. There is no separate transaction-count test; the dollar figure alone controls. Once you cross the line, you must register and begin collecting tax on every subsequent Florida sale.4Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax Check your prior-year total each January so you know where you stand for the year ahead.
Digital Goods and SaaS Sit Outside
The economic nexus threshold applies only to tangible personal property. Digital downloads, streaming services, and software-as-a-service are not tangible personal property under Florida law and are generally not subject to Florida sales tax, so purely digital sellers typically will not trigger economic nexus through those sales. Certain video and communication services fall under a separate communications services tax, which has its own rules.
If You Sell Through a Marketplace
When you sell through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, or Walmart Marketplace, the platform itself is typically responsible for collecting and remitting Florida tax on those sales. Florida Statute 212.05965 requires qualifying marketplace providers to certify to their sellers that the provider will handle collection on all taxable sales made through the platform.5The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 212.05965 – Taxation of Marketplace Sales Once the provider certifies, you may not separately collect or remit tax on those platform sales and must exclude them from your own return.
That does not put marketplace sellers in the clear. Sales through your own website, at craft fairs, or through any channel outside the marketplace still count toward the $100,000 threshold, and only those non-marketplace sales are measured against it.6Legal Information Institute. Fla. Admin. Code Ann. R. 12A-1.103 – Remote Sales; Marketplaces If you have any physical presence in Florida, you must register regardless and collect tax on every taxable sale made outside the marketplace.
What You Actually Collect
The 6% state rate is only part of the bill. Most counties add a discretionary sales surtax on top. For 2026, county surtax rates run from 0% in a handful of counties up to 2% in Hamilton County, with most between 0.5% and 1.5%.7Florida Department of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax Information for Calendar Year 2026 The combined rate a customer pays can therefore run as high as 8% depending on where the goods are delivered.
The surtax follows the delivery county, not the seller’s location. For most sales of tangible personal property, the surtax applies only to the first $5,000 of each item’s sales price. Sell a $10,000 piece of equipment to a buyer in Hillsborough County at 1.5%, and the surtax is calculated on $5,000, not the full amount.8Florida Dept. of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax That cap does not apply to admissions, short-term rentals, or prepaid calling arrangements. Rates change from year to year as counties adopt or retire levies, so verify the schedule each January.
Use Tax: The Other Side of the Rule
Use tax applies when you buy a taxable item and don’t pay sales tax at purchase. Common scenarios include buying from an out-of-state vendor that doesn’t collect Florida tax, taking something you bought tax-exempt for resale and converting it to business use, or buying a taxable item within Florida from a seller who simply didn’t charge tax.4Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax
The rate matches sales tax: 6% state plus whatever surtax the delivery county imposes. Registered dealers report use tax on the same return they use for sales tax. Businesses not otherwise registered still have to self-report and remit any use tax they owe. This catches a lot of companies off guard, especially those buying equipment or supplies from online retailers that don’t collect Florida tax.
Registering After You Cross the Line
Registration is free. The primary document is Form DR-1, the Florida Business Tax Application, submitted online through the Department of Revenue’s e-Services portal or on paper.9Florida Department of Revenue. Account Management and Registration Online submissions typically process within a few business days.
Have this ready before you start:
- Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN), or Social Security Number if the IRS doesn’t require you to have an FEIN.
- Legal business name and physical address. For remote sellers, the address of your principal office.
- The six-digit NAICS code that best describes your business activity.
- Names and contact information for all corporate officers, partners, or owners.
- Your business activity start date. Get this right: the Department can assess back taxes to the actual start date if you register late.
After you submit, the Department issues a Certificate of Registration authorizing you to collect tax.10Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Business Tax Application Brick-and-mortar dealers must display it at the place of business. Remote sellers should keep it in their records. Once you have the certificate, you’re on the clock for returns.
Filing Frequency and Deadlines
The Department assigns your filing frequency based on how much tax you remit. Under Florida Statute 212.11:11The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 212.11 – Tax Returns and Regulations
- Monthly, if tax remitted in the previous four quarters exceeded $1,000.
- Quarterly with monthly payment, if tax remitted exceeded $1,000 but not $12,000 in the previous four quarters.
- Quarterly, if tax remitted was $1,000 or less in the previous four quarters.
- Semi-annual, if $500 or less.
- Annual, if $100 or less.
Whatever the frequency, returns are due on the 1st of the month following the reporting period and become late after the 20th. If the 20th falls on a weekend or state holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day. Electronic filers must initiate and confirm payment by the 20th to be timely.4Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax File a return for every assigned period, even one with no taxable sales. A missed zero-dollar return still triggers the minimum penalty.
What Late or Wrong Costs You
A late-filed return or late payment triggers a penalty of 10% of the tax due, with a $50 minimum. That $50 applies even when no tax is owed, so a late zero-dollar return still costs you.4Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax
Underreporting is worse. If the Department discovers unpaid tax, the penalty is 10% of the undisclosed amount for the first 30 days, plus another 10% for each subsequent 30-day period, up to 50% of the unpaid tax.12Florida Senate. Florida Code 212.12 – Dealer’s Credit; Penalties Interest also accrues on any unpaid balance at a floating rate. For 2026, that rate is 11% for both the January–June and July–December periods.13Florida Department of Revenue. Tax and Interest Rates Businesses that owe estimated payments and fall short face a separate 10% penalty on the underpaid portion.
Filing on time carries a small offsetting benefit. Dealers who file and pay by the deadline keep a collection allowance of 2.5% of the first $1,200 of tax due on each return, capped at $30 per reporting location.14Florida Department of Revenue. An Overview of Sales and Use Tax for Business Owners – Part 5 The allowance disappears if the return or payment is late, which makes the gap between the $30 you keep and the $50 minimum penalty you pay wider than the numbers first suggest.