Florida's back-to-school tax-free holiday is coming up. What to know

With the new school year quickly approaching, you can expect some juicy back-to-school sales to crop up soon, too.

Most scholarly sales happen around one of Florida’s many tax-free holidays. The next one up on the calendar is the back-to-school tax-free holiday, which stretches across two weeks at the end of July and the beginning of August.

In Polk County, that means savings of 7%.

Here’s what to know about the upcoming back-to-school tax-free holiday and what you can get.

When is Florida’s back-to-school tax-free week?

Florida has a two-week back-to-school sales tax holiday that will take place between July 29 and Aug. 11. During this time, people can purchase various school supplies tax free, within some parameters set by the state.

What can you buy during Florida’s back-to-school tax-free week?

Here’s what you can purchase:

• Learning aids and jigsaw puzzles selling for $30 or less.
• Most school supplies selling for $50 or less
• Clothing, footwear and accessories selling for $100 or less. This means all footwear (except skis, swim fins, roller blades and skates); any clothing (except watches, watchbands, jewelry, umbrellas and handkerchiefs); and wallets or bags, including backpacks, diaper bags, fanny packs and handbags.
• Computers and related accessories selling for $1,500 or less (when purchased for non-commercial and personal use). This includes things such as calculators, desktops, electronic book readers, handhelds, laptops, tablets and tower computers. It also includes such accessories as keyboards, mice, modems, monitors, nonrecreational software, other peripheral devices, personal digital assistants and routers. It does not include cellular telephones, video game consoles, digital media receivers, or devices that are not primarily designed to process data.

For a detailed Q&A from the Florida Department of Revenue, click here.

Other Florida tax-free holidays

Florida will have two other tax-free holidays before the end of the year. The second Florida disaster preparedness sales tax holiday will run from Aug. 24 to Sept. 6 and provide residents with tax relief on thousands of products related to hurricane season.

The Tool Time sales tax holiday, which runs from Sept. 1-7, will allow people to purchase tools tax-free up to a certain dollar amount, depending on the category of tool.

When does school start in Polk County?

Students in Polk County Public Schools begin classes on Aug. 12. The start dates for certain private schools and public charter schools might be different. See TheLedger.com's back-to-school primer for more.

What about school supply lists and uniform policies?

They vary from school to school. For uniform policies, including where to purchase uniforms, contact your school directly. Schools provide school supply lists, generally on their social media pages or websites.