If you have owned and used the boat in another state for more than 6 months, then you will not owe Florida any sales/use tax when you move the boat here.Florida may be the next spot this winter.
One of my favorite P.J. O'Rourke quotes... "Giving money to politicians is like giving liquor and the car keys to a teenager!"Most of the E & W coastal states have spending problems. Giving them more money is like giving booze to an alcoholic.
True, with the proviso that the boat must have been USED during those 6 months. Florida has prosecuted, and won, at least one court case that I know of where a person bought a boat in Florida, immediately moved it out of the state, then let it just sit there for 6 months and a day before bringing it back. The state argued (and, again, won) that the fact that they did not use it during the 6 months outside of the state, was proof that they never intended to use it anywhere but Florida, right from the start. So they owed use tax....if the boat was purchased more than 6 months and 1 day before it entered Florida there is no sales tax due.
So, the Florida rules are really pretty simple, in most cases. Buy a boat in Florida and move it out of the state right away and you will not owe FL sales tax. Own and use your boat outside of FL for more than 6 months and you will not owe use tax when you bring it here. Buy your boat elsewhere and bring it to FL within less than 6 months, and you will get credit for any sales tax you have already paid; which means that if you paid less than 6% elsewhere, then you will have to pay the difference.