Service
Florida Sales Tax Compliance
Registration, returns, and nexus review for Florida sales and use tax — including the county surtax that catches out-of-county sellers.
Who this is for
- Florida retailers and restaurants
- Online sellers shipping into or out of Florida
- Service businesses unsure whether what they sell is taxable
- Anyone who has received a Florida Department of Revenue notice
What this actually involves
Nexus decides where you have to register
Physical presence creates nexus. So does economic activity above a threshold, following the Supreme Court decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair, which allowed states to require registration from remote sellers with no physical presence at all.
The practical effect for an online seller is that obligations can arise in states you have never visited. Reviewing where you actually have nexus is the first step, and it is usually a shorter list than sellers fear and a longer one than they assume.
County surtax
Florida adds a discretionary sales surtax that varies by county, and the applicable rate generally follows the delivery address rather than the seller. A business shipping across Florida deals with several different rates.
Getting this wrong is a common finding in a Florida audit, because it accumulates quietly across a lot of small transactions.
Filing frequency and the collection allowance
Florida assigns a filing frequency based on your volume, and it can change as the business grows. Returns are due whether or not there were sales in the period — a zero return still has to be filed.
Florida offers a small collection allowance for filing and paying electronically and on time. It is modest, but it is lost entirely by being late.
Online seller shipping across Florida counties
A Pasco County business sells online and ships throughout Florida. It has been charging its own county surtax rate on every order.
The applicable surtax generally follows the delivery address, so orders shipped to counties with different rates have been charged incorrectly — some under, some over.
What gets filed: Rate configuration corrected to apply the destination surtax, prior periods quantified, and the exposure addressed deliberately rather than left to accumulate.
Illustration only — not a real client. Figures are chosen to show how the rule applies.
What’s included
- Florida sales and use tax registration
- Nexus review, including economic nexus in other states
- Taxability review for your specific products or services
- Monthly, quarterly, or annual returns as assigned
- County surtax configuration
- Response to Department of Revenue notices and audits
How it runs
Nexus review
Where you actually have an obligation, and where you do not.
Registration
Registered in the states where you need to be.
Ongoing filing
Returns filed on your assigned frequency, including zero returns.
Notices handled
Department of Revenue correspondence answered.
What it costs
Fees depend on what your situation actually requires — the number of accounts, the number of years, and whether prior filings need correcting. A return with one W-2 is not the same job as six years of catch-up reporting, and quoting both the same way would be dishonest.
You get a fixed quote in writing before any work starts. No hourly billing, and no invoice that arrives larger than the number you agreed to.
Common questions
Are services taxable in Florida?
Most are not, but there are notable exceptions — commercial cleaning, certain protective services, and commercial rent among them. Whether a specific offering is taxable depends on how it is characterised, and mixed transactions that bundle goods with services need care.
I sell online. Do I need to register in other states?
Possibly. Since the Wayfair decision, states can require registration based on economic activity alone — sales volume or transaction count — with no physical presence needed. Thresholds differ by state. A nexus review across the states you actually ship to is the place to start.
I had no sales this period. Do I still file?
Yes. Once registered, a return is due for every period whether or not there was activity. Missing zero returns generates notices and can eventually affect your registration.
Related services
Business Tax Preparation
Entity and owner returns prepared together, because for most small businesses they are one decision, not two.
Bookkeeping
Books kept current and reconciled monthly, by the same practice that prepares the return they feed.
New Business Formation
Entity choice, registration, EIN, and elections. The structure decisions made at formation are the ones that are expensive to undo.
Talk to us about your situation
A short conversation is usually enough to tell you what your situation actually requires — and what it does not.