Florida nonprofit sales-tax exemption starts with Form DR-5

That form distinction saves a common wrong turn. Form DR-5 is the application. If the group qualifies, Florida Revenue sends Form DR-14, the Consumer’s Certificate of Exemption. The group can show that certificate to a seller when a purchase is exempt under Florida law. A nonprofit name or federal exemption letter cannot stand in for it.

The group must pay with its own funds. If a person pays with personal money, the purchase is taxable even when the group pays that person back. The purchase must also fit the exempt use covered by the certificate.

Keep the current certificate where buyers and bookkeepers can find it. It expires after five years. Selling goods or services is a separate question, because most nonprofit sellers still have to register and handle sales tax unless an exception applies.

For donors, the DR-14 does not decide whether a gift can be deducted on a federal return. One certificate cannot answer every tax question around an event, sale, rental, or gift.