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How do I Calculate a Tax, Tag & Title in Florida?

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Larry Chanin

President, Florida Tesla Enthusiasts
Moderator
Aug 22, 2011
4,937
814
Sarasota, Florida
How do I Calculate a Tax, Tag & Title in Florida?

By Dan Howard, eHow Contributor

The state of Florida charges several fees and taxes on any car that is purchased in the state. You'll need to pay 6 percent state sales tax in addition to any sales tax imposed by the county of purchase. You'll also need to pay a titling fee that varies for new and used cars, and you'll need to pay a registration fee that varies based on the type of vehicle and the weight of the vehicle.

Instructions
Calculate Florida Sales Tax
1 Multiply the purchase price of your vehicle by 6 percent. The result is the amount that you will need to pay to cover Florida state sales tax, as of August 2010. For example, if the purchase price is $20,000, then $20,000 x .06 = $1,200.​

2 Go to the Florida Department of Revenue's Discretionary Sales Surtax Information web page to determine the percent of discretionary sales surtax that is charged by the county in which you are purchasing your vehicle.​

3 Multiply the purchase price of the vehicle by the percent discretionary sales tax charged by the county. This is the amount of sales tax that is due to the county. Continuing the example, if the surtax is 1 percent, than $20,000 x .01 = $200.

CORRECTION: Refer to posting #6, the above statement is not correct. Discretionary sales surtax applies to the first $5,000 of the sales amount on the sale, so the county sales tax for a surtax of 1 percent would be limited to $50, not $200.

4 Add together the amount of state sales tax due and the amount of county sales tax due. This is the total amount of sales tax that you will need to pay for your purchase. So, $1,200 + $200 = $1,400. Total sales tax for this example should be $1,250.

Calculate Registration Tag Fees

5 Research the weight of your vehicle. (The Model S weighs over 4,100 pounds.) Florida charges different yearly registration fees depending on your vehicle's type and weight. As of August 2010, cars weighing less than 2,500 pounds cost $46.15 per year, cars weighing 2,500 to 3499 pounds cost $57.15, and cars over 3,500 pounds cost $70.65 per year. Trucks up to 2,000 pounds cost $46.15 per year, trucks between 2,000 and 3,000 pounds cost $57.15 per year, and trucks over 3,000 pounds cost $70.65 per year.​

6 Multiply the registration fee from Step 1 by 2 if you want to pay ahead for two years of registration fees. So, if your car weighs 2,300 pounds, then $46.15 x 2 = $92.30.​

7 Add the by-weight registration fees to $225. This is the base fee that you need to pay to obtain a new registration in the state of Florida. So, $92.30 + $225 = $317.30.​

8 Add license plate fees. If you are transferring plates from another vehicle then add $7.65; if you need new metal plates then add a $28 license plate fee. The sum is the total amount that you will need to pay to register your car. So, if you are adding new metal plates, then $317.30 + $28 = $345.30.​

Calculate Titling Fees

9 Start with the base Florida state titling fee of $75.25.
10 Add $2 to the titling fee if you are titling a new vehicle.​

11 Add $10 to the titling fee if you are titling a vehicle that was previously registered in a different county or a state other than Florida.​

12 Add a $2 fee if you are recording a lien on your title. So, if you are financing a new vehicle, then $75.25 + $2 + $2 = $79.25.


So for example a Model S in Sarasota county that costs $100,000 (before the federal tax credit) in which the license plates are being tranferred:

State sales tax = $100,000 x .06 = $6,000.00

County sales tax = $5,000 x .01 = $50.00

By-weight registration fee = $70.65

Registration base fee = $225.00

Plate transfer fee = $7.65

Base titling fee = $75.25

Total taxes and fees: $6,428.55
Larry
 
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In Florida, when buying a new vehicle and trading in another vehicle, the taxable sales price of a new vehicle can be reduced. This reduces the sales tax paid on the new vehicle.

Sales and Use Tax on Motor Vehicles


Taxable sales price
– The full sales price before any deductions are made for federal taxes, freight, handling, delivery, commission, advertising, future free service, or any other expense or cost. Costs for titling, licensing, and registration are not subject to tax if separately stated.

A trade-in that the dealer intends to resell lowers the sales price if the sale and trade occur in one transaction. A dealer’s discount reduces the selling price of the vehicle at the moment of sale.

Manufacturer rebates are not considered a reduction in the sales price. Tax must be calculated on the taxable sales price before the rebate.

So returning to my example in the previous posting, if I'm buying a $100,000 car in Sarasota county, and my trade-in is worth $4,000, then my sales tax is reduced by $240.

Larry
 
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Thanks Larry.

Over in the main "Trade In" thread it's rumored/speculated that Tesla will use Autonation for the trade-ins but it makes a big difference for FL residents to show that comes off the retail price before tax is applied.

Hi Nigel,

Yes, it was that posting and Dave's remarks in that thread that prompted me to update this thread.

By the way, for what its worth I heard the same thing that gg reported, that is Tesla will work with a third party to handle trade-ins.

Larry
 
Thanks Larry.

Over in the main "Trade In" thread it's rumored/speculated that Tesla will use Autonation for the trade-ins but it makes a big difference for FL residents to show that comes off the retail price before tax is applied.

According to my pre-MVPA that I received today, the trade-in value is included in the purchase agreement, so I get the deduction on the purchase price and the concurrent sales tax reduction. It was blank for now (of course), but full expect it to fill in when the time comes (about 30 days before delivery).

I don't care if they use Auto Nation, Car Max or whomever, just as long as it's on the purchase order. Otherwise, I'm better off selling my car to Car Max directly or on Craig's List if I can't get it to offset my purchase price.
 
After checking official Florida government references it would appear that the original reference quoted in the first posting has an error regarding county sales taxes.

The Florida Department of Revenues website states:


Tax Rates

The discretionary sales surtax rate depends on the county. Rates currently range from .5 percent to 1.5 percent. A few counties do not impose the surtax. Form DR-15DSS lists Florida counties and their rates. The form is updated yearly in November.

Limit on Amount of Tax Charged

In many cases, there is a limit to the amount of tax charged. Discretionary sales surtax applies to the first $5,000 of the sales amount on the sale, use, lease, rental, or license to use any item of tangible personal property. Tangible personal property is personal property that you can see, weigh, measure, or touch or is in any manner perceptible to the senses, including electric power or energy. The $5,000 cap does not apply to rentals of real property, transient rentals, or services.

Here is a correction to the example provided in the first posting:

So for example a Model S in Sarasota county that costs $100,000 (before the federal tax credit) in which the license plates are being tranferred:

State sales tax = $100,000 x .06 = $6,000.00

County sales tax = $5,000 x .01 = $50.00

By-weight registration fee = $70.65

Registration base fee = $225.00

Plate transfer fee = $7.65

Base titling fee = $75.25

Total taxes and fees: $6,428.55

For a $4,000 trade-in the Sales taxes would be:

State sales tax = ($100,000 -$4,000) x .06 = $5,760.00

County sales tax = $5,000 x .01 = $50.00


I will edit the prior postings to correct this error.

Larry
 
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