What is the Tourist Development Tax?
The Tourist Development Tax is authorized by F.S. §125.0104 and is levied by county governments (not the state) on the same tax base as Florida's state transient rental tax: all short-term rental revenue from accommodations rented for 6 months or less. Each county chooses its own rate (within statutory limits) and allocates the revenue to designated uses (tourism promotion, beach restoration, etc.).
The TDT is collected separately from the state sales tax. While the state DOR collects state sales tax (and the county discretionary surtax) through DOR registration, the TDT is administered by each county's Tax Collector office. This means short-term rental hosts potentially have two separate registrations and two separate remittance processes — unless their bookings go through a Marketplace Facilitator platform that handles both automatically.
TDT rates for key Florida counties
| County | TDT Rate | State+Surtax | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miami-Dade | 6% | 7% | 13% |
| Broward | 6% | 7% | 13% |
| Palm Beach | 6% | 7% | 13% |
| Pinellas (St. Pete/Clearwater) | 6% | 7% | 13% |
| Hillsborough (Tampa) | 6% | 7% | 13% |
| Orange (Orlando) | 6% | 6.5% | 12.5% |
| Osceola (Kissimmee) | 6% | 6.5% | 12.5% |
| Sarasota | 5% | 7% | 12% |
| Collier (Naples) | 5% | 7% | 12% |
| Lee (Fort Myers) | 5% | 6.5% | 11.5% |
| Charlotte | 5% | 7% | 12% |
| Volusia (Daytona Beach) | 6% | 6.5% | 12.5% |
| Brevard (Space Coast) | 5% | 6.5% | 11.5% |
| Monroe (Florida Keys) | 5% | 7% | 12% |
| Pasco | 4% | 7% | 11% |
| Manatee (Anna Maria Island) | 5% | 7% | 12% |
Rates are current as of April 2026. Verify with your county tax collector before filing — counties can adjust TDT rates by ordinance with 30 days' notice.
TDT registration with your county tax collector
Even if Airbnb or VRBO collects and remits TDT on your behalf for platform bookings, most Florida counties require the host to maintain their own TDT registration for audit purposes. Registration is typically free or low-cost ($25–$50) and is done directly with the county tax collector's office.
The registration process generally requires:
- Property address
- Owner's name and address (Canadian addresses accepted in most counties)
- Your state DOR sales tax registration number
- Your DBPR vacation rental license number
- Expected annual rental revenue (for frequency determination)
TDT returns are typically filed monthly or quarterly, depending on expected annual tax liability. Many counties now offer online filing through their tax collector's website.
How Airbnb and VRBO handle TDT collection
Since 2020, Airbnb and VRBO are designated Marketplace Facilitators under Florida law and collect and remit both state sales tax and TDT on behalf of hosts for platform-booked reservations. Platform collection agreements exist with all 67 Florida counties (though implementation details vary by county).
Practical implications:
- Guests see the total tax as a single line item (e.g., 'Taxes: $X') on the platform booking — they do not see a breakdown between state and county taxes.
- Hosts receive their payout after platform fees but the TDT and state sales tax are collected from the guest separately and remitted directly to tax authorities by the platform — the host never holds these funds.
- For direct bookings or property-manager-booked stays, you (or your manager) must collect and remit both state sales tax and TDT separately.
Notes for Canadian owners
- TDT registration is county-specific — Register with the tax collector in the county where your property is located, not with a central state agency.
- Even with platform collection, keep records — Your platform (Airbnb, VRBO) provides an annual tax summary showing how much TDT was collected and remitted on your behalf. Keep this for your CRA T776 and IRS Schedule E records — the TDT collected on your behalf is not your income, but it appears in your gross revenue.
- TDT is deductible on Schedule E — TDT you personally collect and remit (on direct bookings) is deductible as a rental expense on IRS Schedule E and CRA T776, since it is a cost of earning rental income.
- Direct bookings require careful setup — If you take direct bookings, build the total tax rate into your pricing. A guest booking at $200/night in Miami-Dade owes $26 in taxes (13%) — collect this on top of the rental rate and remit it separately.
Every figure, rate, threshold, and deadline in this guide is drawn from a verifiable primary source listed at the bottom of the page. The article is updated whenever the underlying rules change, with a fresh review date stamped at the top.
Sources and references
Public sources verified as of the last review date.
- F.S. §125.0104 — Tourist Development Tax
- Florida DOR — Transient Rental Tax
- Individual county tax collector offices (linked from each county government website)