Florida's $5,000 surtax cap on big-ticket holiday sales: worked examples

Florida charges a 6% state sales tax and lets counties add a discretionary sales surtax on top of it. For 2026, the surtax runs from 0% to 2% depending on the county, as published in Form DR-15DSS. A lot of dealers know there is a $5,000 cap, but fewer can say exactly what it covers, and the fourth quarter is when a mistake gets repeated across the most invoices. Here is how the rule works, with examples built from the 2026 rates on our rates and surtax page.

The rule in one paragraph

Under section 212.054(2)(b)1, Florida Statutes, the sales amount above $5,000 on any single item of tangible personal property is not subject to the surtax. The 6% state tax still applies to the entire amount. The cap does not apply to admissions, transient rentals or sales of services, and it does not apply to prepaid calling arrangements. The surtax rate is that of the county where the customer takes delivery, wherever the seller is located.

Example 1: one item over the cap

A customer takes delivery of an $8,000 piece of furniture in Duval County, where the 2026 surtax is 1.5%.

• State tax: 6% of $8,000 = $480.00
• Surtax: 1.5% of the first $5,000 = $75.00
• Total tax: $555.00

Without the cap, the surtax would have been 1.5% of $8,000, or $120, so the cap saves the customer $45. In Citrus County, which has no surtax, the same sale carries $480 in tax.

Example 2: several items on one invoice

The cap applies per single item, not per invoice. Suppose the customer buys three separate $2,000 items in the same Duval County delivery. Each item is tested against the cap on its own, and none is over $5,000, so the cap does not reduce anything.

• State tax: 6% of $6,000 = $360.00
• Surtax: 1.5% of $6,000 = $90.00
• Total tax: $450.00

The invoice total is over $5,000, but no individual item is. A system that applies the cap to the whole invoice will under-collect.

Example 3: a set sold as a unit

Items normally sold as a set or unit are treated as a single item, according to the Department's guidance as described on our rates page. A $7,000 dining set sold as one unit and delivered to Duval County is tested as one item, so the surtax is 1.5% of $5,000 = $75. Whether a particular group of goods counts as a set is a question for the Department, not for the invoice layout, so confirm any borderline case.

Example 4: a service, where the cap does not apply

An $8,000 installation service for a customer in Hamilton County, where the 2026 surtax is 2%, gets no cap. The state tax is $480 and the surtax is 2% of $8,000 = $160. This is the case that surprises sellers who assume that the cap is a general ceiling on surtax. It applies only to a single item of tangible personal property. The same is true of admissions and transient rentals. Whether a given service is taxable at all is a separate question that this article does not answer.

Delivery decides the county

If a Duval County dealer ships the furniture in Example 1 to a customer in Citrus County, the customer takes delivery in Citrus, and the surtax is 0%. If the same dealer delivers to Hamilton County, the rate is 2%. Our rates page has the 2026 table for all 67 counties and a calculator that applies the cap. Remember that it is an arithmetic illustration only and does not decide whether a sale is taxable.

Check the January reset

Rates are reset each January, and the Department publishes a new Form DR-15DSS for each calendar year. Our rates page notes that four counties, Brevard, Charlotte, Liberty and Santa Rosa, have components printed with a December 31, 2026 expiration, and that unless those levies are extended the rates move on January 1, 2027. Pull the 2027 form before the first sale of the year instead of relying on last year's table.

Collected surtax is reported on your return by county, and the due dates page shows when each period's return is due. This is general information from published Department sources, not tax advice. Confirm the treatment of a specific transaction with the Florida Department of Revenue.