COLUMBIA, S.C. — Tax free weekend in South Carolina is officially underway.
It always occurs the first weekend of August. The first ever tax free weekend in South Carolina was back in 2000.
“It’s basically a time for families to save money on important back to school supplies,” said Bonnie Swingle, the spokesperson for the South Carolina Department of Revenue.
Shoppers have the option to purchase items like school supplies, clothing, computers and many other things tax free.
“Tax payers over the past five years, shoppers have saved about 1.5 to 2.5 million dollars each weekend,” explained Swingle. “Last year, shoppers spent about 18.7 million on tax free items. This helps out our South Carolina retailers, as well as our families who are looking to save some money during the time to get school supplies for their kids.”
Swingle says depending on what county you live in, sales tax can be different. The state sales tax rate is 6 percent, but in some counties, it might be more than that since counties have local tax rates.
“If you’re buying a more expensive item like a lot of clothes or a computer, a printer, even some of the bed and bath items can get a little pricey, those are some items you can already save six to eight percent on just by not paying the sales tax during the weekend,” said Swingle.
If people are not wanting to go out and go shopping for tax free weekend and would rather stay home, they will still be able to save money by purchasing online with items that are listed as the tax free items. People need to make sure they purchase the items during the weekend and it is shipped to their South Carolina address.
For more information on South Carolina Tax Free Weekend, you can visit the state’s Department of Revenue’s website.