Florida's sales tax refund on impact windows, explained

Florida may offer eligible homeowners a sales tax refund on qualifying impact-resistant windows, doors and garage doors, created by HB 7031 (2026 legislative session) and claimed from the Florida Department of Revenue . The mechanic worth knowing: you pay the sales tax at purchase and apply for the refund afterward. It is not a discount at the register. Amounts, eligibility and filing deadlines change, so this page does not print them. The DOR page is the current one, and this guide covers what does not move: how the claim works and how to keep the paperwork so it is a formality.

Who it is aimed at

A site-built home (not a condominium unit, mobile home, or commercial property).
A Florida homestead exemption on the property, within the property value limit the statute sets.
Qualifying products: impact-resistant windows, doors and garage doors rated for wind and wind-borne debris under the current test standards, bought inside the purchase period the statute sets.

Every one of those limits, and the refund amount itself, is set by the Department of Revenue and changes with legislation. Read the current version at floridarevenue.com before you count on it, and treat any page that quotes you a number (including a contractor's) as something to verify there.

How to make the claim painless

1 Get an itemized invoice: products listed as impact-resistant with their ratings or approval numbers, and the sales tax shown as its own line.
2 Keep the product approval numbers from your permit file with the invoice; the same documents also feed your OIR-B1-1802 wind mitigation form (the wind mitigation guide explains that chain).
3 File the DOR application after purchase, using the current forms, filing window and instructions from floridarevenue.com .

Why pages disagree about this

Florida used to run a point-of-sale program that took the sales tax off qualifying impact windows at the register. That program has ended, and the refund replaced it. The two work differently in the way that matters to your cash flow: one cut the price at the till, the other returns tax you already paid, after you file. A large share of window marketing pages were written during the exemption years and never updated, which is why you will still find the old version described in the present tense. Check anything you read against the Department of Revenue , including this page.

Where the refund fits in the project

Price the job on its own economics. An impact window project is justified by the protection and by the documentation it creates: the permit record, the product approvals, and the FS 627.0629 insurance credits that recur every renewal once the openings are on the 1802 form. The cost guide carries the current Lee County price bands, and the impact windows page covers how a whole-opening scope gets built. Separately, this DOR refund may be available on a qualifying purchase, and the income-restricted grant tier of My Safe Florida Home may help eligible homeowners with opening protection. Treat both as possible offsets to confirm with the agency, not as line items in your budget.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the refund automatic when I buy the windows?

No. You pay sales tax at purchase, then file a refund application with the Florida Department of Revenue afterward. Keep the itemized invoice showing the tax paid and the product descriptions. The DOR publishes the application forms, the current amount, and the filing instructions at floridarevenue.com.

Does a condo or rental property qualify?

As written, the refund is aimed at site-built homes with a Florida homestead exemption, and condominium units, mobile homes and investment properties sit outside it. Eligibility rules change with legislation, so confirm your own situation with the Florida Department of Revenue at floridarevenue.com before you plan around it.

Do doors and garage doors count, or only windows?

Qualifying impact-resistant windows, doors and garage doors may all count, meaning products designed to resist wind and wind-borne debris to the current test standards. What qualifies, and what the refund is worth, are published by the Florida Department of Revenue at floridarevenue.com.

What happened to the no-sales-tax impact window deal I read about?

Florida used to take the sales tax off qualifying impact windows at the register. That program has ended, and pages still advertising it are out of date. What may be offered now is a refund you claim from the Florida Department of Revenue after the purchase, with its own rules. Check floridarevenue.com for the current terms.