Florida's outdoor gear tax holiday begins Sept. 1: Here's what to know

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Florida shoppers can stock up on tax-free gear for outdoor recreation during a four-month sales tax holiday starting next week, state officials said.

Florida sales tax holiday

What we know:

Florida's 2026 Hunting, Fishing and Camping Sales Tax Holiday begins September 1 and runs through Dec. 31, providing state sales tax savings on outdoor supplies. State leaders created the seasonal tax break to help local residents buy gear for outdoor activities.

The Florida Retail Federation applauded the upcoming relief period for shoppers. 

"This four-month holiday is a win for Florida families and for the retailers who serve them," Scott Shalley, president and CEO of Florida Retail Federation, said. "We're grateful to the Legislature and Governor DeSantis for their continued leadership and support on tax relief for Florida families and retailers."

The holiday is part of the sales tax package (HB 7301E) Gov. Ron DeSantis signed alongside the 2026-2027 fiscal year budget on June 29.

During the bill signing ceremony in Tampa, DeSantis called the discount period a "really good opportunity" for hunters and campers and noted that the holiday period in 2025 "was a big hit."

State economists projected the 2025 discount period, which ran from Sept. 8 through the end of the year, would save shoppers $44.8 million.

The month-long back-to-school holiday was projected to save shoppers more than $200 million.

This year, even with the extra week that includes the Labor Day holiday, the discount is projected to cost state and local governments $40 million.

Outdoor recreation gear exemptions

Here's what's exempt:

Unlike the month-long back-to-school holiday discount period that included personal computers valued at $1,500 or less, there is no ceiling on the price of firearms, bows and accessories to receive the discount during the "Hunting, Fishing, and Camping" holiday period.

Qualifying hunting supplies are completely tax-free regardless of the purchase price. Camping supplies feature specific price thresholds: lanterns and flashlights qualify at $30 or less, while stoves, portable hammocks, collapsible chairs and sleeping bags stay exempt up to $50 each. Tents qualify for tax relief at $200 or less.

Fishing equipment also features specific spending limits to qualify. Individual bait and tackle items stay tax-free at $10 or less, or $20 or less when bundled together. Tackle boxes and bags qualify up to $30, while rods and reels qualify up to $75 each, or $150 for a matched set.

With no price cap, the discount period removes sales taxes on ammunition, pistols, rifles and shotguns, along with a variety of accessories that include firearm barrels, charging handles, cleaning kits, handguards, holsters, grips, magazines, sights and silencers.

The discount also applies to bows and crossbows, and their accessories, which include arrows, bolts, quarrels, quivers, releases, sights and wristguards.

Unlimited firearm accessories, ammunition and guns

What they're saying:

When the bill was before the House in March, Parkland Democratic Rep. Christine Hunschofsky questioned the provision she said supports "the purchase of unlimited firearm accessories, unlimited ammunition, unlimited guns."

"We also have other rights that we have in this country, such as the right to petition," said Hunschofsky, who was mayor of Parkland when 17 people were massacred at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. "I would suggest that maybe making it more accessible for Floridians to go and vote, more accessible for Floridians to have initiatives on the ballot and have their voices heard, would be better uses of tax dollars supporting people's rights."

But House Ways & Means Committee Chairman Rep. Wyman Duggan, a Jacksonville Republican whose committee crafted the package, said the inclusion of gun accessories is tied to the 2024 measure approved by voters that enshrined the right to hunt and fish into the state constitution.

"Obviously, those are activities that the citizens of our state engage in, and as a component of that in our sales tax holiday, we wanted to include the accessories that go along with exercising that constitutional right," Duggan said on the House floor.

Sales tax exclusions

What we don't know:

State officials have not detailed if any additional outdoor categories will join the tax-free list before the discount period ends.

Florida News