Ocala, FL Local Taxes & Fees: Business Tax Classification (2026)

Sec. 62-63 sits in Article III of chapter 62, the city's local business tax article, which requires every person carrying on a business, profession or occupation with a permanent location or branch in Ocala to hold a valid local business tax certificate under Sec. 62-62. Section 62-63 adds two classification rules on top of that basic requirement. First, a certificate is needed for every location or branch, treated as if it were a wholly separate business, and a second certificate is needed for each unique or different type of business activity carried on even at a single address.

Second, when a business, occupation or profession fits more than one of the classifications in the tax schedule at Sec. 62-81, the city collects the fee from whichever classification produces the highest revenue, unless a different part of the city code requires the operator to hold multiple licenses anyway. The building official or their designee has the authority to determine which classification applies to a given business activity, making that office the practical decision-maker when an applicant's business model spans categories such as retail sales plus a personal service.

Certificates run October 1 through September 30 and must be renewed by August through September, per Sec. 62-64, and a person operating under more than one classification still faces the delinquency and no-certificate penalties in Sec. 62-66, which run from a 10 percent monthly penalty up to 25 percent of the tax due for operating without a certificate at all.