The Sarasota County Tax Collector serves 1,400 customers a day. In order to protect customers and staff from the spread of COVID-19 and follow the CDC guidelines, some in-person services are being restricted. According to Tax Collector Barbara Ford-Coates, “After a great deal of careful consideration, and with guidance from the Governor’s Office, the Department of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles, and our partners in government, we are temporarily changing services available in our offices.” Effective immediately, and until further notice, most motor vehicles, driver’s licenses, and tax transactions must be completed online. Driver’s license road tests and learner’s permit tests are suspended. Phone operators are available at 941-861-8300 to assist customers who need help completing their online transactions or who do not have access to the internet. Deadlines have been extended for anyone with a driver’s license, commercial driver’s license (CDL) or ID card expiring between March 16th and April 15th. These licenses will be valid an additional 30 days and renewals during that period will not have delinquent fees charged. Vehicle registrations, due on the owner’s birthday, and 2019 tax payments due by March 31st, can be paid online or through the mail.

While offices hours and days open are subject to change, Tax Collector Service Centers will remain open for transactions that require an office visit. These include: title transfers and duplicate title applications, licenses for new residents, CDL testing, and certain medical driver testing. Customers should check SarasotaTaxCollector.com for updates related to transactions, office hours and days open before coming into an office.