Walton County, FL Short-Term Rentals: Taxes & Fees (2026)
Key Facts
- Base tax rate
- 2% of total rental charge
- Governing section
- Walton County Code § 19-26
- Covered term
- Rentals of six months or less
- Collected by
- Host at time of payment
- Remitted to
- Clerk of the Circuit Court, monthly
- Records retention
- 3 years, open to inspection
Summary
Walton County levies a base two percent tourist development tax on any short-term rental of six months or less under County Code Section 19-26, on top of state sales tax. The host collects the tax at the time of payment and remits it monthly to the Clerk of the Circuit Court, who administers and audits collections.
(a)Levy. There is hereby levied and imposed a tourist development tax in the subcounty special district of the state described by ordinance, at the rate of two percent of each whole and major fraction of each dollar of the total rental charged every person who rents, leases or lets for consideration any living quarters or accommodations in any hotel, apartment hotel, motel, resort motel, apartment, apartment motel, roominghouse, mobile home park, recreational vehicle park or condominium for a term of six months or less. ... (c)Collection. The tourist development tax shall be charged by the person receiving the consideration for the lease or rental, and it shall be collected from the lessee, tenant or customer at the time of payment of the consideration for such lease or rental.(d)Remittance to county; returns; accounts. The person receiving the consideration for such rental or lease shall receive, account for and remit the tax to the clerk of the circuit court or his appointed representative, acting in his capacity to the board of county commissioners, at the time and in the manner as described for persons who collect tax under F.S. § 212.03.
Full Breakdown
Section 19-26 is the base levy: two percent of the total rental charged on any living quarters or accommodation in a hotel, motel, apartment, roominghouse, mobile home park, recreational vehicle park, or condominium rented for a term of six months or less, which covers South Walton's vacation rentals as well as traditional hotels. ch. 212. 00 or less. 083, and dealers must keep three years of rental records available for inspection in the county. Proceeds go to the county tourist development trust fund, less an administrative cost the Clerk may retain of up to three percent of collections.
Section 19-26 is the foundation the county later layered additional levies onto (Sections 19-29 through 19-33) for beach renourishment, low-cost air service, and the north-county district, so a South Walton host's actual bill is higher than the bare two percent this section sets. 16 and obtain proof of TDT registration through the Clerk as a condition of the county's short-term vacation rental certificate.
Violations & Fines
A dealer who fails or refuses to charge, collect, or remit the tax is personally liable for the unpaid tax and can face misdemeanor prosecution under the article's later sections. Refusing to let the Clerk of the Circuit Court examine rental books and records is itself a second-degree misdemeanor punishable under F.S. § 775.083, separate from the tax debt owed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do short-term rental hosts in Walton County have to collect a tourist tax?
How often must the tax be remitted?
What happens if a host won't let the county audit their rental records?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Walton County
How Walton County compares: Cities with the Highest Short-Term Rental Taxes·Florida rules heatmap·Compare Walton County to another location·View the Florida short-term rentals overview
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