Virginia's Back-To-School Sales Tax Holiday Not Scheduled In 2023

VIRGINIA — Back-to-school shoppers in Virginia won't get a break on their sales tax this weekend because the sales tax holiday regularly scheduled the first weekend of August won't take place in 2023.

Since 2006, sales tax holidays have been held ahead of the new school year. Over three days, sales tax was waived for qualifying items such as school supplies, clothing, footwear, hurricane and emergency preparedness products, Energy Star products and WaterSense products.

But this year, the Virginia Department of Taxation's website noted the Virginia General Assembly did not renew the sales tax holiday in the 2022 Appropriation Act. A sales tax holiday also failed to pass this year as a budget stalemate continues in the General Assembly.

A sales tax holiday can't be ruled out for the future, as some legislators hope to get it included in the budget. Del. Barry Knight, who is representing House Republicans in budget discussions, told WAVY.com that he would like a sales tax holiday early in the school year in 2023 if the Democratic-led Senate agrees.

While the budget stalemate is attributed to disagreements on tax relief, Knight said the sales tax holiday only ended because legislation to extend it wasn't brought forward.

In neighboring Maryland, a sales tax holiday is scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 13 to Saturday, Aug. 19.

Even as Virginia's sales tax holiday is uncertain, U.S. shoppers are expected to spend a record amount on back-to-school shopping. The anticipated $41.5 billion is higher than 2022's $36.9 billion and the previous high of $37.1 billion in 2021, according to the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics.

Based on the retail trade group's survey of 7,843 consumers earlier this summer, families with school-aged children will spend an average of $890 on back-to-school shopping this year, about $25 more than last year’s record of just under $865.

Meanwhile, college students and their families expect to spend about $1,367 on average this year, higher than the 2021 record where families spent $1,200. College student spending reflects furnishings and food accounts along with other back-to-school supplies like laptops, phones and other electronics.