How much is FIRPTA withholding on a Florida sale?
The short answer
15% of the amount realized, generally the gross sales price, withheld by the buyer and paid to the IRS within 20 days of the transfer: $75,000 on a $500,000 sale. Where the buyer will live there, nothing is withheld at $300,000 or less and 10% up to $1,000,000. It is a prepayment of the seller’s US tax, not a Florida closing cost.
The withholding at common prices
The amount realized is generally the gross sales price. The second column assumes the residence condition is met; the first assumes it is not, which is any sale where the buyer will not live there, and every sale above $1,000,000.
| Amount realized | Any other sale | Buyer will live there |
|---|---|---|
| $250,000 | $37,500 (15%) | None |
| $300,000 | $45,000 (15%) | None |
| $350,000 | $52,500 (15%) | $35,000 (10%) |
| $400,000 | $60,000 (15%) | $40,000 (10%) |
| $500,000 | $75,000 (15%) | $50,000 (10%) |
| $600,000 | $90,000 (15%) | $60,000 (10%) |
| $750,000 | $112,500 (15%) | $75,000 (10%) |
| $1,000,000 | $150,000 (15%) | $100,000 (10%) |
| $1,250,000 | $187,500 (15%) | $187,500 (15%) |
| $1,500,000 | $225,000 (15%) | $225,000 (15%) |
| $2,000,000 | $300,000 (15%) | $300,000 (15%) |
| $3,000,000 | $450,000 (15%) | $450,000 (15%) |
The reductions apply to the whole amount, not in bands: a $1,000,000 sale to a buyer who will live there is withheld at 10% on all of it, and a sale a dollar over at 15% on all of it.
The figures, and where each is set
- Withholding
- 15% of the amount realized Generally the gross sales price: not the seller’s net proceeds, and not the gain. Withheld by the buyer. 26 U.S.C. § 1445(a)
- Buyer will live there, $300,000 or less
- No withholding Where the buyer acquires the property as a residence, and the buyer or a member of the buyer’s family has definite plans to live there for at least 50% of the days it is used by anyone during each of the first two 12-month periods after the transfer. IRS, FIRPTA withholding
- Buyer will live there, over $300,000 up to $1,000,000
- 10% of the amount realized On the same condition. Above $1,000,000, or where the buyer will not live there, the full 15% applies. IRS, FIRPTA withholding
- Reported and paid over
- Within 20 days of the transfer On Form 8288, with a Form 8288-A for each foreign seller. Treas. Reg. § 1.1445-1(c)(1)
The residence reduction is the IRS’s, applied where the buyer acquires the property as a residence, and the buyer or a member of the buyer’s family has definite plans to live there for at least 50% of the days it is used by anyone during each of the first two 12-month periods after the transfer: IRS, FIRPTA withholding. Whether it applies is for the buyer’s and the seller’s own advisers.
When nothing is withheld
When the seller is not a foreign person. A seller who is not gives the buyer a certification, under penalties of perjury, that they are not a foreign person, with their name, US taxpayer identification number and home address, or office address for an entity (IRS, Exceptions from FIRPTA withholding). We collect it from every seller on every file.
A withholding certificate
Where the seller’s actual tax on the sale will be less than the withholding, the seller can apply to the IRS on Form 8288-B for a certificate that reduces or excuses it, before the closing. If the application is in on or before the day of the transfer, the 15% is still withheld at the closing but is held until the IRS decides, and paid over within 20 days of its decision (Treas. Reg. § 1.1445-1(c)(2)(i)(A)).
What happens at the closing
The withholding is shown on the closing statement as a deduction from the seller’s proceeds, held in trust at the closing, and remitted with Forms 8288 and 8288-A on the buyer’s behalf within 20 days. How a file runs from the first question to the remittance is on FIRPTA withholding on a Florida closing; how a seller abroad signs is on the seller is overseas.
Common questions
How much is FIRPTA withholding?
15% of the amount realized, which is generally the gross sales price, not the seller’s net proceeds and not the gain. On a $500,000 sale that is $75,000. Where the buyer will live there, it is nothing at $300,000 or less and 10% up to $1,000,000: $50,000 on the same sale.
Is there FIRPTA withholding on a sale under $300,000?
Not where the buyer acquires the property as a residence, and the buyer or a member of the buyer’s family has definite plans to live there for at least 50% of the days it is used by anyone during each of the first two 12-month periods after the transfer. On any other sale by a foreign person, the full 15% applies whatever the price.
When does the 10% FIRPTA rate apply?
On an amount realized over $300,000 and up to $1,000,000, where the buyer acquires the property as a residence, and the buyer or a member of the buyer’s family has definite plans to live there for at least 50% of the days it is used by anyone during each of the first two 12-month periods after the transfer. Above $1,000,000, or where the buyer will not live there, the full 15% applies.
Who withholds under FIRPTA?
The buyer, under 26 U.S.C. § 1445(a): not the seller and not the closing agent. On a Florida closing the buyer directs the closing agent to hold the withholding out of the seller’s proceeds and to remit and report it on the buyer’s behalf.
When is FIRPTA withholding due?
By the 20th day after the date of the transfer, under Treas. Reg. § 1.1445-1(c)(1), on Form 8288 with a Form 8288-A for each foreign seller. Where an application for a withholding certificate was submitted on or before the day of the transfer, the 15% is still withheld at the closing but need not be paid over until the 20th day after the IRS mails its decision.
When is no FIRPTA withholding due?
When the seller is not a foreign person and gives the buyer a certification, under penalties of perjury, that they are not, with their name, US taxpayer identification number and address. The residence reduction is the other common exception, and a withholding certificate from the IRS on Form 8288-B can excuse or reduce it.
Is FIRPTA withholding the seller’s tax?
It is a prepayment toward it. The seller files a US return for the year of the sale and claims credit for the amount withheld, using the stamped Form 8288-A.
Does FIRPTA change the Florida closing costs?
No. The deed stamps, the title premium and the recording are what they would be on any sale. FIRPTA changes how much of the price reaches the seller at the closing, not what Florida charges.
These are the figures the licensed review of our FIRPTA page stood behind on October 8, 2026, read from 26 U.S.C. § 1445(a), Treas. Reg. § 1.1445-1 and the IRS pages linked above. We do not give tax advice and do not decide whether a seller is a foreign person or whether an exception applies; that belongs with the seller’s and the buyer’s own advisers.