Grand Floridian Hotel © WDW
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In addition to the Florida Sales Tax Rate which starts with a base rate of 6% then adds any discretionary sales tax surcharge that is determined by each county, the State of Florida also has a [highlight]Transient Rental Tax Rate[/highlight]. The Orlando Hotel Tax Rates include the transient rental rate which is also known as a Hotel Occupancy Tax (sometimes shown as County OCC Tax) is added to the county sales tax for the amount of your room. This additional tax is imposed on rentals or leases of accommodations in hotels, motels, apartments, rooming houses, mobile home parks, RV parks, condominiums or timeshare resorts for a term of six months or less.
The majority of Florida counties administer the additional transient rental tax rate themselves, with a handful being administered by the Florida Department of Revenue. At the 2022 update, there are now 5 counties that do not have an additional tax for accommodation rentals: Calhoun, Lafayette, Liberty, Sumpter and Union. In addition to county-wide transient rental tax rates shown below, Florida law authorizes certain cities in Broward and Miami-Dade counties to impose a local option municipal resort tax on transient rental transactions and on the sale of food and beverages consumed in restaurants and bars. These additional city transient tax rates are not included in the following tax amounts.
The Central Florida Counties consist of Orange, Seminole, Osceola, Lake and Polk Counties. All of these counties, with the exception of Seminole County have included a discretionary sales tax surcharge. An example of the total tax rate when staying at a Central Florida hotel would include the transient rental rate + the county tax (general + discretionary) for a total amount.
Orange County 6.00% + 6.50% = 12.5%
Osceola County 6.00% + 7.50% = 13.5%
Seminole County 5.00% + 7.00% = 12%
Lake County 4.00% + 7.00% = 11%
Polk County 5.00% + 7.00% = 12%
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This tax can amount to a fairly large increase in your hotel bill for your Florida vacation and is something that you should ask about when reserving your hotel room. An example of the cost for a week stay at a $300 a night Orlando hotel will be $2362.50. This is calculated by using $300 * 7 = 2100. Than adding $262.50 in taxes for the 12.5% rate in Orange County. This is assuming that the hotel is not charging any other fees such as, resort fees, parking charges.
To avoid sticker shock at the end of your vacation, be sure to ask in advance if your hotel charges for the following:
- Parking
- Internet Access
- Bellman
- Gym Fees
- Resort Fees
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The following list is current as of February 2022. When taxes are collected by County, it is best to verify with that county that the Transient Rental Tax Rate is correct as counties do not always post updates with the Florida Department of Revenue.
