Taxable services in Florida are a short, specific list: security and detective work, nonresidential cleaning, nonresidential pest control, admissions to amusement and recreation venues, and repairs that involve any parts or materials. Everything else is exempt by default. Florida’s general sales tax rate is 6%, and most counties add a discretionary surtax of 0.5% to 2%.1Florida Dept. of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax Information for Calendar Year 2026 The state uses an enumeration approach, meaning a service is taxable only if a statute specifically says so.
Security, Detective, and Protection Services
Detective work, burglar alarm monitoring, security guard services, and other protection services are taxed at the full 6% state rate plus any applicable county surtax.2Florida Senate. Florida Statutes Chapter 212 Section 05
One carve-out matters here. Off-duty law enforcement officers working in uniform under the direct command of their agency are treated as performing law enforcement duties, not private security, so those charges are not taxable regardless of how the arrangement is labeled.
Nonresidential Cleaning and Pest Control
Interior cleaning of commercial and industrial buildings is taxable at 6% plus surtax. That covers janitorial work, custodial services, and floor or window cleaning at offices, warehouses, restaurants, and similar spaces.3Cornell Law Institute. Florida Administrative Code Annotated Rule 12A-1-0091 – Cleaning Services Pest control at nonresidential buildings follows the same rule, including periodic pest inspections at commercial properties.4Cornell Law Institute. Florida Administrative Code Annotated Rule 12A-1-009 – Receipts From Services Rendered for Exterminating and Pest Control
The residential versus nonresidential line is sharp. Cleaning a home, apartment, condo, or nursing home is exempt; cleaning the office building next door is taxable. Pest control splits the same way: spraying a house is exempt, spraying a warehouse is taxable.5Florida Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax on Cleaning Services A few pest control scenarios are exempt regardless: lawn spraying (residential or commercial), agricultural pest control, and pest treatment for vehicles, aircraft, or boats.4Cornell Law Institute. Florida Administrative Code Annotated Rule 12A-1-009 – Receipts From Services Rendered for Exterminating and Pest Control
Admissions and Amusement
Admissions to any place of amusement, sport, or recreation are taxed at 6% of the sales price.6Florida Senate. Florida Code 212 – Admissions Tax Rate, Procedure, Enforcement That reaches movie theaters, theme parks, concerts, sporting events, and similar venues. Coin-operated amusement machines are taxed differently, at 4% on gross receipts plus any applicable county surtax.2Florida Senate. Florida Statutes Chapter 212 Section 05
Repairs and Other Mixed Transactions
Repair work is where Florida’s rules catch many service providers off guard. If the repair involves any parts or materials that get incorporated into the item being fixed, the entire charge is taxable, including the labor portion. It does not matter whether the invoice separates parts and labor.7Florida Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax – Repairs to Tangible Personal Property Even a drop of lubricant during a lawnmower repair makes the whole invoice taxable.
Labor-only repairs are the escape hatch. If the repairer can prove through records that no parts or materials were supplied or attached, the labor charge is exempt.7Florida Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax – Repairs to Tangible Personal Property The burden is on the repairer to document that nothing tangible changed hands. A jeweler who tightens a loose setting without adding material, for example, owes no tax on that service.
The same logic reaches installation work and any other mixed transaction where a service is bundled with tangible property. Once materials are part of the deal, the tangible property component pulls the whole transaction into taxable territory.
Commercial Rent Is No Longer Taxable
Florida used to tax rent on office space, retail storefronts, warehouses, and self-storage units. That tax was repealed effective October 1, 2025, eliminating both the state sales tax and any county surtax on commercial rent for occupancy periods starting on or after that date.8Florida Department of Revenue. Tax Information Publication TIP No 25A01-04 – Sales Tax on Commercial Rentals Repealed Effective October 1, 2025 If you are still seeing sales tax on a commercial lease that began after September 2025, the charge is wrong.
Digital Products and Communications Services
Digital products such as e-books, downloaded music, and electronically delivered software are not tangible personal property under Florida law, so they fall outside the sales tax entirely. Software-as-a-service accessed through the cloud is treated the same way; because no tangible property changes hands, the 6% sales tax does not apply.
Communications services are handled by a separate tax, not the general sales tax. Florida imposes a Communications Services Tax on cable television, satellite TV, video and music streaming, telephone service (including VoIP), and mobile communications.9Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Communications Services Tax The CST has its own state and local rate components and must be itemized separately on customer bills. Any tax line on a Florida phone or streaming bill is this tax.
Services That Are Exempt
Because Florida taxes only enumerated services, the exempt list is effectively everything else. Professional services fall outside the sales tax: legal advice, accounting, tax preparation, medical care, architectural design, engineering, and consulting. The one wrinkle is bundling. If a professional engagement includes tangible property, the physical portion can trigger tax on those items.10Florida Department of Revenue. Technical Assistance Advisement 06A-011 – Sales Tax Consulting Services An architect delivering only design plans owes no tax; an architect who also supplies scale models may owe tax on those items.
Other common exempt services include residential cleaning, residential pest control, landscaping, hair and beauty services, personal training, tutoring, and general consulting. If the service is not on the statutory list and does not involve handing over tangible personal property, no sales tax applies.
Buying Taxable Services Without Paying Tax
Resale Certificates
Florida’s Annual Resale Certificate is not limited to goods. A business that buys a taxable service to resell it can present the certificate to the provider and make the purchase tax-free.11Florida Dept. of Revenue. Annual Resale Certificate for Sales Tax Handing over the certificate certifies that the service will be resold as part of regular business operations. A staffing company that buys security guard services and resells them to a client could use the resale certificate on that purchase. The provider accepting it should keep the certificate on file in case of an audit.
Nonprofit Exemptions
Qualifying nonprofits, including 501(c)(3) charities and educational institutions, can obtain a Consumer’s Certificate of Exemption from the Florida Department of Revenue. Presenting it lets the organization buy materials, supplies, and most taxable services without paying tax, so long as the purchase is used in the organization’s customary nonprofit activities.12Florida Dept. of Revenue. Nonprofit Organizations and Sales and Use Tax One trap: even when the tenant is tax-exempt, pest control charges billed to the landlord of a nonresidential building remain taxable, because the landlord, not the nonprofit, is the purchaser of the service.4Cornell Law Institute. Florida Administrative Code Annotated Rule 12A-1-009 – Receipts From Services Rendered for Exterminating and Pest Control
If You Sell Taxable Services
Any business selling taxable services in Florida must register with the Department of Revenue and obtain a Certificate of Registration before collecting sales tax. Registration is done online, and once issued the certificate should be displayed at the place of business.
Florida rewards timely compliance with a small collection allowance. Dealers who file electronically and pay on time can deduct 2.5% of the first $1,200 in tax due, up to $30 per reporting location.13Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax
Late filings are less forgiving. Filing a return or paying tax late triggers a penalty of 10% of the tax owed, with a minimum of $50 that applies even if no tax is due for the period. A floating interest rate accrues on any underpayment.13Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax Businesses required to file and pay electronically face an additional $10 penalty for each paper submission. Florida’s audit lookback covers 36 months, so misclassifying a service can compound for years before anyone catches it.