Removable Sun Screening Devices: Tint Limits, Exemptions, and Penalties

Florida window tint laws require at least 28% visible light transmittance on front side windows with no more than 25% reflectance, allow much darker film on windows behind the driver, and prohibit tint across the main viewing area of the windshield. The specific rear-window limit depends on your vehicle type: passenger cars can go down to 15% transmittance, while SUVs, minivans, and other multipurpose vehicles can go as dark as 6%. The rules live in Sections 316.2951 through 316.2957 of the state traffic code.

Front Side Windows: The 28% Rule

The windows next to the driver and front passenger must let at least 28% of visible light through once film is applied. That measurement combines the factory glass and the aftermarket film together, not the film alone. The same section caps total solar reflectance at 25%, measured from outside the vehicle.¹

Those two numbers work independently. A film can pass the darkness test and still fail reflectance, or the reverse. Officers carry handheld tint meters that check both values during a stop, so a film sold as “legal” is only legal if the installed combination actually measures within both limits on your specific glass.

Rear and Back Windows

Behind the front seats, Florida gets much more permissive. Standard passenger cars can run rear side and back window film at 15% transmittance or above, with reflectance up to 35%.²

Multipurpose passenger vehicles get even more room. The category covers SUVs, minivans, and similar trucks built to carry ten or fewer people, and the rear-window transmittance floor drops to 6%. The 35% reflectance cap stays the same.² A 6% film is close to blackout, which is why so many heavily tinted SUVs on Florida roads are perfectly compliant.

There is one trade-off for darkening the back glass. If the rear window carries material that makes it nontransparent, the vehicle must have exterior side mirrors on both sides giving the driver a clear view of at least 200 feet behind.² Modern cars come with dual mirrors from the factory, so most drivers never notice this requirement. Older vehicles with a single driver-side mirror need a passenger-side mirror added before the rear tint goes on.

The Windshield

The windshield has the strictest rules of any surface on the vehicle. Florida prohibits covering any portion of it with screening material, stickers, or any product that reduces visibility.³

One narrow exception exists. A transparent strip of sunscreening material is allowed along the top of the windshield, but only above the AS-1 line defined by Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 205. That line marks the boundary of the driver’s direct forward viewing area, and everything below it must stay completely clear.³ The strip itself has to be transparent, so mirrored or opaque brow bands are not allowed even up top.

Check Your Driver’s Door Jamb

Every installer or seller of sunscreening material in Florida must supply a pressure-sensitive, self-destructive, nonremovable vinyl label with the film. The label has to state that the product complies with Sections 316.2951 through 316.2954, name the material, and identify the installer or seller. The installer is required to affix it to the inside of the left door jamb.⁴ Factory glazing that already meets Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 205 does not need a separate label.

That sticker matters more than most drivers realize. It tells an officer at a glance that a professional installed the film and certified compliance, which can mean the difference between a visual check and a tint meter test on the roadside. A vehicle without the label can be treated as noncompliant even when the film itself measures within the limits. If you have aftermarket tint, open the driver’s door and look for the label now. If it is missing or illegible, the shop that did the work should replace it.

Medical Exemptions

Drivers with lupus, autoimmune diseases, or other conditions requiring limited sunlight exposure can apply for a medical exemption certificate through the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. The certificate allows film on the windshield, side windows, and rear windows that would otherwise violate the standard limits.⁵

How to Apply

The application uses FLHSMV Form 83390. It includes a Physician’s Statement of Certification that must be completed and signed by a qualifying medical professional: a licensed physician, dermatologist, physician assistant, or advanced registered nurse practitioner acting under a physician’s protocol. You also submit a photocopy of a current Florida driver license or identification card. The fee is $6.50 per vehicle, and the completed packet goes to the Bureau of Motorist Compliance in Tallahassee.⁶

What the Certificate Covers

The exemption attaches to a specific vehicle, not just the person. The certificate lists the make, model, year, VIN, decal number, and registered owner.⁵ There is no expiration date, but the certificate is nontransferable and becomes void when you sell or transfer the vehicle. Buying a new car means applying again and paying another $6.50.⁶

The statute does not explicitly require you to carry the certificate in the vehicle. Even so, FLHSMV issues a decal number for each exempt vehicle, and keeping a copy on hand is the simplest way to resolve a traffic stop quickly. Without documentation available at the roadside, you may still receive a citation to contest later.

Penalties and the Fix-It Process

A tint violation in Florida is a noncriminal traffic infraction, closer in severity to a parking ticket than a moving violation. It does not add points to your driving record and generally does not affect insurance premiums. Most officers write it as a correctable citation, giving you time to remove or replace the illegal film and bring the vehicle back for verification.

The typical correction window is 30 days. Within that period, you need to bring the tint into compliance, have a sworn law enforcement officer inspect the vehicle and endorse the citation, then submit the endorsed citation to the clerk of court in your county. Corrected tickets usually run $30 to $60 in most counties. Ignoring the citation or missing the deadline pushes the fine higher, often $100 or more once court fees are added, and leaving it unresolved can result in a driver license suspension.

Tint shops face additional exposure that individual drivers do not. Under federal law, any manufacturer, dealer, distributor, or repair business is prohibited from installing aftermarket screening that drops the windshield or front side windows below 70% transmittance, the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 205 baseline. The federal civil penalty is up to $1,000 per noncompliant installation. Federal law does not restrict what you do to your own vehicle, so the state’s 28% front-side limit is the real ceiling you face as an owner. The federal rule is why reputable shops will refuse to install very dark film on front windows even when a customer insists.⁷

1
Florida Senate. Florida Code 316.2953 – Side Windows; Restrictions on Sunscreening Material
2
Florida Senate. Florida Code 316.2954 – Windows Behind the Driver; Restrictions on Sunscreening Material
3
Florida Senate. Florida Code 316.2952 – Windshields; Requirements; Restrictions
4
Justia. Florida Code 316.2955 – Window Sunscreening Material; Compliance Labeling; Tolerances
5
Florida Senate. Florida Code 316.29545 – Window Sunscreening Exclusions; Medical Exemption; Certain Law Enforcement Vehicles, Process Server Vehicles, and Private Investigative Service Vehicles Exempt
6
Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Application for Sunscreening Medical Exemptions
7
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Interpretation 3147o