Ohio’s 2019 Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday August 2-4

Back-to-school season has returned – and so has the Sales Tax Holiday! For the fifth consecutive year, The Ohio Department of Taxation has announced the return of the sales tax holiday to help reduce the back-to-school blow to your wallet.

The 2019 Sales Tax Holiday runs from August 2 through August 4 at midnight. During this holiday, the following items will be exempt from sales and use tax:

• Clothing priced at $75 per item or less
• School supplies priced at $20 per item or less
• School instructional material priced at $20 per item or less

There is no limit on the amount of the total purchase as long as each item purchased meets the qualifications above. For example, you can purchase multiple clothing items, so long as each item is priced at $75 or less then the entire order would be tax-free. If you purchase multiple items of clothing under $75 each and one of the items is priced at $80, you would only be taxed on the $5 over the limit. If your qualified purchases total $450, this would equate to a tax savings of over $30.

There are certain items that are not eligible during the holiday and will still be subject to sales tax. Some items that do not qualify include:

• Items purchased for use in a trade or business
• Sports or recreational equipment
• Clothing accessories such as hair bows, purses, sunglasses, wallets, watches, etc.

Qualified items sold to consumers by mail, telephone, email or internet will also qualify for the sales tax holiday so long as the consumer purchases and pays for the items during the exemption period and the purchase is set for immediate shipment.

Ohio has provided a list of frequently asked questions to help address common inquiries regarding the holiday and exempt items.