Florida sales tax filing and compliance for Kendall businesses

Florida’s sales tax is 6% at the state level plus Miami-Dade County’s 1% discretionary surtax, so a Kendall business generally collects 7% on taxable sales. Simple enough on paper. In practice, restaurants, retailers, contractors, salons, auto shops, and short-term rental owners in Kendall run into the same problems every year: unclear taxability of a service, deposits that don’t match the POS, a late DR-15 that triggers penalties, a surtax cap on big-ticket items applied wrong, or a Department of Revenue audit letter that arrives three years after the fact.

Because sales tax is money you collected on the state’s behalf, the Department of Revenue treats it seriously — unremitted sales tax can create personal liability for the owner and, in extreme cases, criminal exposure. It is worth getting right.

Sales tax services for Kendall businesses

• Registration (Form DR-1) — determining whether you need to collect, registering with the Florida Department of Revenue, and setting your filing frequency.
• DR-15 preparation and filing — monthly, quarterly, or annually, reconciled to your POS and bank deposits so the numbers hold up in an audit, filed and paid on time to keep the collection allowance.
• Taxability guidance — what’s taxable and what isn’t for your industry: restaurant sales and catering, retail, repairs, contractor materials versus real-property improvements, commercial rent (no longer taxable in Florida as of 2025), and services.
• Short-term rental taxes — state sales tax plus Miami-Dade’s tourist development taxes on Airbnb and VRBO properties in Kendall, and what the platforms collect versus what you still owe.
• Use tax — the tax Kendall businesses owe on equipment and supplies bought online or out of state without sales tax, which auditors always look for.
• Clean-ups and voluntary disclosure — catching up unfiled periods and, where appropriate, using Florida’s voluntary disclosure program to limit penalties and look-back.
• Audit representation — handling a Florida sales tax audit from the first letter through the assessment and protest, so you’re not negotiating with the auditor yourself.

Industry notes for Kendall

Restaurants and food trucks: the DR-15 must reconcile to the POS, and the auditor will test it against your purchases (the “markup” method). Daily sales reconciliation in the books is your defense. Contractors: most real-property improvement contracts are not taxable to the customer, but you pay tax on the materials — a distinction Kendall contractors get wrong in both directions. Retail and e-commerce: marketplace sales, shipping charges, and the surtax cap on items over $5,000 each have specific rules. Auto repair and salons: parts and products are taxable; most labor is not, so the split has to be clean on the invoice.

Florida Sales Tax in Kendall — FAQs