Which items are included in Missouri’s tax-free weekend? What to know before shopping
It’s that time of year again when the school year creeps closer even as the summer rages on.
To help families get ready for a return to the classroom without breaking the bank, the state of Missouri is once again suspending state and local sales taxes on back-to-school items for a weekend.
Missouri’s tax-free weekend this year will be Aug. 5 to 7. Anyone can shop without paying state and local sales taxes on included items during this time, even if you’re not shopping specifically for the purpose of going back to school.
The Missouri state legislature made the holiday a part of state law.
Kansas does not have a tax-free weekend, but Kansans can shop in Missouri to participate in the holiday.
Here’s what to know when planning your shopping.
WHICH STORES PARTICIPATE IN TAX-FREE WEEKEND?
Any store in Kansas City with eligible items will be part of Missouri’s tax-free weekend, according to the Missouri Department of Revenue.
Stores in certain cities and counties throughout the state opted out and will still charge their local taxes during the holiday, and certain business districts will still keep their district taxes for the weekend, but state sales taxes will be suspended throughout all of Missouri from Friday to Sunday.
ARE THERE LIMITS TO HOW MUCH ITEMS CAN COST TO BE TAX-FREE?
Yes, some items have price caps to qualify for tax-exemption.
According to the Missouri Department of Revenue:
A piece of clothing needs to be less than or equal to $100.
School supplies can’t exceed $50 per purchase.
Graphing calculators need to be less than or equal to $150.
Computer software has to be less than or equal to $350.
Computers and laptops need to be less than or equal to $1,500.
For example, a pair of shoes that cost $90 is tax-free, but a jacket that costs $110 is not and will be taxed.
WHAT ARE ALL OF THE QUALIFYING TAX-FREE ITEMS?
Purchases of back-to-school items like clothes, personal computers and school supplies are tax-exempt for the weekend.
These clothing items will be tax-free:
Belts
Cloth and other materials for making uniforms and other clothing
Coats
Diapers, both cloth and disposable
Dresses
Gloves
Hats
House coats and slippers
Jackets
Leggings
Pants
Shirts
Shorts
Shoelaces
Shoes or boots
Socks
Tights
Undergarments
Computer items that will have taxes suspended include:
Compact disk drives
Daughterboards
Digitizers
Disk drives
Desktop and laptop computers
Display monitors
Keyboards
Memory modules
Microphones
Modems
Motherboards
Mouse
Multimedia speakers
Printers that must be connected to a computer
Random access memory
Scanners
Single-user hardware
Single-user operating systems
Soundcards
Storage drives
Tablet computers or iPads
Tower computer systems
Video cards
You will not have to pay sales taxes on these school supplies:
Art supplies
Art razor knives and replacement blades
Backpacks
Binder clips
Blank computer disks
Book bags
Card stock
Chalk
Crayons
Dry-erase markers
File folders
Graphing calculator
Globes
Glue
Handheld calculators
Hole punches
Index divider tabs
Index dividers
Inkjet refills
Journals
Lunch boxes
Magnetic note pads
Maps
Mini pocket packs with paper
Musical instruments
Note cards
Notebooks
Padlocks
Paper
Poster mounting putty
Push pins
Rubber bands
Rulers
Scissors
Staplers
Staples
Stencils
Tape
Textbooks
Thumbtacks
USB flash drives
Writing instruments
Writing tablets
ARE THERE ITEMS THAT DON’T QUALIFY?
While these items may be used in school, these are not included in the tax-free weekend:
Adding machine tape
Batteries
Belt buckles
Blackboards
Briefcases
Bulletin boards
CD players
Copiers
Desktop telephones
Digital cameras
Envelopes
Facial tissues
Film
Film processing
Furniture or fixtures
Handbags
Handkerchiefs
Headbands
Headphones
Halloween costumes
Handheld media devices, like iPods
Jewelry
Keepsake boxes with paper
Locker mirrors
Mailing tapes
MP3 players and accessories
Non-digital cameras
Paper trimmer and blade refills
Portable telephones
Power strips
Pre-recorded compact discs and DVDs
Radios
Scarves
Single-use cameras
Sporting equipment
Standalone printers
Storage bags
Table cloth
Thank you notes
Ties
Umbrellas
VHS tapes
Watches
Watchbands
This story was originally published July 26, 2022 at 7:00 AM.
