Florida Marijuana Business

Related Pages:
Florida Marijuana Licensing >
Florida License to Grow >

What is the Demand for Marijuana in Florida?

One year after the legalization of medical marijuana in Florida, cannabis sales generated between $20 million and $40 million in 2017. In 2018, the number of patients using medical marijuana went up to 165,072 from 63,054 in 2017. In the same year, the number of approved dispensaries rose to 83 from only 25 in the previous year. Florida also made an estimated $626 million in medical marijuana sales in 2018 according to a report by ArcView Market Research and BDS Analytics, which tracks the industry.

Per a Whitney Economics report, marijuana sales in Florida generated approximately $1.3 billion in 2020. Florida ranked third in the United States for cannabis sales in 2020 behind only Colorado and California, two states where recreational marijuana is legalized. As of December 2020, Florida had over 450,000 qualified patients, consistently adding over 3,000 patients every week. Patient growth has made Florida the largest medical marijuana market in the United States by sales. With an increasing number of registered patients, the state’s medical marijuana sales have grown significantly. An industry report shows that the legal sales of medical cannabis in Florida between January and July of 2022 stands at $1.04 billion.

In 2019, SB182 became effective and allowed for the possession, use, or administration of smokable marijuana flowers in Florida. By 2020, the state had established rules for the production of marijuana edibles. Demand for marijuana edibles grew across Florida due to the rise in product offerings, a smoke-free method of consumption, and a more sanitary consumption method when compared to smoking dried flower in a bowl or joint. As a result of the medical marijuana market and the increasing demand for edibles nationwide, marijuana edibles sales are projected to reach $250 million in 2021, according to the Marijuana Business Daily.

How is Marijuana Taxed in Florida?

As of 2023, Florida does not have cannabis-specific sales tax for medical marijuana. However, the state charges a retail tax for each purchase as it does for all items bought at retail stores. Florida has no recreational marijuana tax because recreational marijuana is currently illegal in the state.

Marijuana taxes help keep marijuana legal and well regulated. Tax varies from state to state and can be charged as excise, sales, or retail levies. Marijuana taxes are commonly levied based on the percentage of the price, weight, or potency. There is no excise tax on medicinal marijuana sales in Florida. Purchases are subject to a 6% statewide retail sales tax. Sales tax is applied to the cost of taxable products or services and collected from the buyer at the time of purchase.

As a business owner in Florida selling taxable goods, you act as an agent of the State of Florida by collecting tax from purchasers and remitting it to the Florida Department of Revenue. It is your duty to handle the taxes received from medical marijuana purchasers in order to comply with state and municipal regulations. Failure to do so may result in fines and interest costs. It is advised that you set up tax collection at the point of sale since collecting sales tax from buyers after transactions have been completed is almost impossible.

Filing a Florida sales tax return consists of two steps: providing the necessary sales data and remitting the collected tax money to the Florida Department of Revenue. You must describe your total sales in the state, the amount of sales tax collected, and the location of each sale throughout the filing process. The state employs a sales and use tax filing (DR-15) form, which may be found on the DOR website. You may, however, pay your taxes online using the My Florida tax site.

The Florida Department of Revenue sets a filing frequency to taxpayers. Typically, this is decided by the dispensary or MMTC's size or sales volume. Larger companies are often obliged to submit tax payments more regularly. In Florida, tax returns and payments must be submitted at the same time. After obtaining a Florida business tax license, you must submit returns at the end of each designated collection period, regardless of whether or not sales tax was collected. You must submit a "zero return" if no sales tax was collected. Penalties and interest costs may apply if a zero return is not submitted.

If you missed a Florida sales tax reporting deadline due to circumstances beyond your control, such as bad weather or an accident, the Florida Department of Revenue (DOR) may give you an extension. You may, however, be requested to produce proof to back up your allegation.

Note that the Florida DOR specifies that all businesses "close their books" if the business owners are selling or otherwise transferring ownership of their business. In such instances, the business owners need to file a final sales tax return.

What is the Agency Taxing Marijuana Business in Florida?

The Florida Department of Revenue (DOR) is the governmental agency in charge of collecting the state's marijuana sales tax, if applicable. The Florida Department of Revenue (DOR) offers essential services to millions of people, companies, and families across the state, including general tax administration, child support services, and property tax monitoring.

The Governor, Attorney General, Chief Financial Officer, and Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services lead the DOR. These four statewide elected individuals select an Executive Director to oversee and administer the Department's activities.

Discretionary sales surtax (also called county tax) is imposed by many Florida counties and applies to most transactions subject to sales tax. The Department of Revenue collects and distributes the surtax back to the counties. To compute the sales tax rate for each county, the local option surtax rate is added to the general sales tax rate. A list of the discretionary sales surcharge rates collected per county can be found on the DOR website.

The Florida Department of Revenue is located at:

5050 West Tennessee Street

Tallahassee, FL 32399

Fax: (850) 245-5990