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Tax & AccountingJune 22, 2022

States offering back-to-school tax breaks expand

Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting explores upcoming state sales tax breaks to help parents as they prepare for a new school year

What: Back-to-school sales tax holidays remain popular in many states. With many students returning to a normal classroom for the first time in a couple of years, the sales tax holidays may be especially important for parents. These temporary tax exemptions are available for a very short time and only apply to specific items and amounts outlined by each state. 

Why: It is important to keep in mind and prepare for the tax holiday period in your state since the tax holiday period may be as short as only a couple of days. The earliest tax holiday, in Alabama, starts on July 15, 2022.

States Offering Back-to-school Sales Tax Holidays in 2022 (in alphabetical order):

Alabama
July 15-17 Clothing (not accessories or protective or recreational equipment) with sales price of $100 or less per item; single purchases, with a sales price of $750 or less, of computers, computer software, school computer equipment; noncommercial purchases of school supplies, school art supplies, and school instructional materials with sales price of $50 or less per item; noncommercial book purchases with sales price of $30 of less per book.
Arkansas
August 6-7 Clothing items under $100, clothing accessory or equipment under $50, school art supplies, school instructional materials, electronic devices, and school supplies.
Connecticut August 21-27 Clothing and footwear that costs less than $100 (not any special clothing or footwear primarily designed for athletic activity or protective use, and not jewelry, handbags, luggage, umbrellas, wallets, watches, and similar items).
Florida July 25-August 7 Clothing, school supplies, learning aids and puzzles, and personal computers.
Illinois August 5-14 Clothing items that each have a retail selling price of less than $125; and school supplies used by students in the course of study. Items that qualify for the tax holiday are subject to tax at a reduced rate of 1.25%.
Iowa August 5-7 Clothing and footwear (not accessories, rentals, athletic or protective) with sales price of less than $100 per item.
Maryland August 14-20 Any item of clothing or footwear with a taxable price of $100 or less, excluding accessory items such as jewelry, watches, watchbands, handbags, handkerchiefs, umbrellas, scarves, ties, headbands, and belt buckles; and the first $40 of the taxable price of any backpack or bookbag.
Mississippi July 29-30 School supplies, clothing or footwear (not accessories, rentals, or skis, swim fins, or skates) with sales price under $100 per item.
Missouri August 5-7 Noncommercial purchases of clothing (not accessories) with taxable value of $100 or less per item; school supplies up to $50 per purchase; computer software with taxable value of $350 or less; personal computers and computer peripherals up to $1,500; and graphing calculators with a taxable value of $150 or less. Localities may opt out. If less than 2% of retailer's merchandise qualifies, retailer must offer a tax refund in lieu of tax holiday.
New Mexico August 5-7 Footwear and clothing (not accessories or athletic or protective clothing) with sales price of less than $100 per item; school supplies with sales price of less than $30 per item; computers with sales price of $1,000 or less per item; computer peripherals with sales price of $500 or less per item; book bags, backpacks, maps and globes with sales price less than $100 per item; and handheld calculators with sales price of less than $200 per item. Retailers are not required to participate.
Ohio August 5-7 School supplies with a price of $20 or less, clothing with a price of $75 or less, and school instructional materials with a price of $20 or less.
Oklahoma August 5-7 Any article of clothing or footwear (excluding accessories, rentals, and athletic or protective clothing) that is designed to be worn on or about the human body and that has a sales price of less than $100.
South Carolina August 5-7 Clothing (not rentals), clothing accessories, footwear, school supplies, computers, printers, printer supplies, computer software.
Tennessee July 29-31 Clothing (not accessories), school supplies, and school art supplies with sales price of $100 or less per item; computers with sales price of $1,500 or less per item.
Texas August 5-7 Clothing and footwear (not accessories, athletic, protective, or rentals), school supplies, and school backpacks with sales price of less than $100 per item.
Virginia August 5-7* School supplies and clothing: clothing and footwear with selling price of $100 or less per item, and school supplies with selling price of $20 or less per item. *Unless Virginia takes further action, this provision will expire on July 1, 2022.
West Virginia August 5-8 Clothing with a price of $125 or less; school supplies with a price of $50 or less; school instructional materials with a price of $20 or less; laptop and tablet computers, not purchased for use in a trade or business, with a price of $500 or less; and sports equipment, not purchased for use in a trade or business, with a price of $150 or less.

Who: Mark Luscombe, JD, LL.M, CPA, principal analyst for Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting, and Carol Kokinis-Graves, JD, attorney and senior state tax analyst for Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting who specializes in tracking, analyzing, and reporting issues regarding state and local sales and use taxes, are available to discuss specific sales tax holidays for each state, including:

  • 2022 effective dates
  • Qualifying items (school supplies, clothing, computers, software, etc.)
  • Dollar Limits

PLEASE NOTE: These materials are designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. The information is provided with the understanding that Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting is not engaged in rendering tax advice or accounting, legal, tax or other professional service.

For more information, visit www.wolterskluwer.com, and follow us on TwitterFacebookLinkedIn, and YouTube.

Contact: To arrange interviews with Mark Luscombe or Carol Kokinis-Graves and other federal and state tax experts from Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting on this or any other tax-related topics, please contact Bart Lipinski.

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