Anyone who would like to learn about the tourist development tax process is invited to a free online class hosted by Lee County Clerk & Comptroller Kevin Karnes.
The class will take place on June 11 at 2 p.m. through the online platform Zoom.
Tourist development tax is a 5% tax imposed on rental charges for short-term accommodations in Lee County. It is collected and paid by property owners and dealers, which include entities like hotels, motels, and property managers who lease accommodations.
Commonly referred to as bed tax or resort tax, tourist development tax funds are required by state statute to be used for advertising and promotion of Lee County, beach and shoreline improvements and maintenance, and stadium debt service and maintenance for both Lee County Sports Complex and JetBlue Park.
While dealers are required to collect and remit tourist development tax, this How-To class will be focused on helping homeowners who rent out their property and handle bookings themselves ensure they are in compliance with Florida law.
The Lee County Clerk of the Circuit Court is one of a few Clerk’s offices in Florida to administer, collect, audit and enforce compliance with the county’s tourist development tax dollars.
In the class, attendees will learn the following:
- What is tourist development tax
- Who is required to register
- What are the taxable charges
- Audit & compliance information
- How to submit an application
- Making payments online
- Information on tourist tax statistics
- Available contacts & resources
Participants should register at www.leeclerk.org/seminar to receive the Zoom link for the class.
This class is part of the “How-To” series provided by the Lee Clerk to educate the community about all of the resources available to them. Recorded tutorials of past “How-To” classes are available at www.leeclerk.org/howto.
