By B.C. Manion
You don’t have to be heading back to school to take advantage of this week’s sales tax holiday – anybody purchasing apparel or school supplies can benefit, as long as the items they purchase qualify for an exemption.
Often referred to as a “back-to-school” tax holiday, the state’s sales tax holiday allows consumers to purchase items of apparel priced at $75 or less, sales tax-free. The same goes for school supplies which are priced individually at $15 or less, according to the state’s Department of Revenue website.
This year’s sales tax holiday begins at 12:01 a.m. Friday, Aug. 12 and runs through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 14.
The sales tax holiday is not restricted to shoppers of a certain age and does not require any proof that someone is heading back to school, said Renee Watters, of the Florida Department of Revenue.
The tax holiday creates a bit of a buzz among retailers who sell back-to-school merchandise, said John Fleming, director of communications for the Florida Retail Federation.
“It’s sparked a lot of competitiveness,” Fleming said.
It also has ripple effects, as nearby businesses such as restaurants often jump on the bandwagon – offering discounts to attract customers who are enjoying the state’s tax holiday.
“A lot of consumers perceive the holiday as something fun,” Fleming said.
The tax break acts as a stimulus, increasing foot traffic at retailers selling exempt items, Fleming said.
The most common questions that consumers have involve what items qualify for exemption and whether there is a limit regarding how many exemptions they can get, Fleming said.
According to the state’s website, exempt items include clothing, wallets or bags, including handbags, backpacks, fanny packs and diaper bags. Items such as briefcases, suitcases and other garment bags are not tax-exempt.
School supplies are defined as pens, pencils, erasers, crayons, notebooks, notebook filler paper, legal pads, binders, lunchboxes, construction paper, markers, folders, poster board, composition books, poster paper, scissors, cellophane tape, glue, paste, rulers, computer disks, protractors, compasses and calculators.
The tax break applies to each exempt item, no matter how many items are sold on the same invoice to a customer.
Books, however, are not exempt from sales tax. Clothing and school supplies sold at a theme park, entertainment complex, public lodging establishment or airport are not exempt, either — so expect to shell out sales tax on that Mickey Mouse pencil from the Magic Kingdom.
The law also specifies that items normally sold as a unit cannot be split apart and sold separately. For instance, a pair of shoes that goes for $80 cannot be sold as two separate shoes at $40 each.
When clothing items are advertised as “buy one, get one” the retailer cannot sell each item at half-price in order to qualify for the exemption. However, if the merchant were offering a 50 percent discount, the qualifying items that sell for $75 or less would qualify.
