Starting October 1, 2025, Florida will fully eliminate sales tax on commercial leases. This includes both the state sales tax and the local surtax that counties often add on top.
This change was made official through House Bill 7031, recently signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis. Florida was one of only a few cities or states to tax commercial rent. That’s now coming to an end.
This new law gives Florida businesses a big cost break and makes the state more attractive for business growth. The state began lowering this tax in 2018. Over time, lawmakers reduced the rate from 6% to 2%. This final step finishes that process.
What’s Changing?
Currently, Florida charges a 2% sales tax on commercial lease payments. Many counties also add a surtax, which can bring the total to over 3%. The tax applies to office, retail, warehouse, and industrial spaces. It even applies to other costs passed through in a lease, like property taxes or insurance.
As of October 1, 2025, no sales tax will apply—at either the state or local level.
How We’re Helping Clients Prepare
At National Lease Advisors, we provide lease administration services to clients with real estate portfolios across the country, including hundreds of leases in Florida. We’re already helping clients prepare for this change by:
Updating Rent Schedules
We’re working with clients to revise rent schedules that include sales tax. Since sales tax applies to both base rent and CAM charges, we’re adjusting both components to reflect the new zero tax rate—ensuring accurate monthly payments and avoiding overcharges.
Coordinating with Landlords
Some landlords may not yet be aware of the change or may not have updated their billing systems. We’re proactively reaching out to landlords to confirm they remove sales tax from invoices starting in October 2025.
Auditing 2024 Reconciliations
When 2025 reconciliations are issued in early 2026, we’ll be reviewing them closely to make sure any sales tax is excluded for the portion of the year beginning October 1.
Advising Finance Teams
This tax change affects budgeting, forecasting, and rent accruals. We’re helping our clients’ finance teams understand how the change impacts their models and advising them on how to adjust internal systems now—before 2025 ends.
What You Should Do Now
Even though the tax relief doesn’t begin until October 2025, it’s smart to prepare now. Update rent payments and budgets for the eliminated sales tax effective in October, discuss with your landlords to confirm they’re aware of the change, and set a reminder to review the October rent invoice and 2025 reconciliation to ensure the sales tax was correctly removed.
Our team is here to help. At National Lease Advisors, we make sure clients stay ahead of legal and financial changes related to real estate lease management—so they don’t leave money on the table.