China Tourist Tax Refund: Eligibility and Steps

Short answer

If you're visiting China on a foreign passport (or a Hong Kong/Macau/Taiwan travel permit) and won't stay longer than 183 days, you can get VAT back on shopping at licensed tax-refund stores: spend ¥200 or more in one store on one day, keep the goods unused, and claim within 90 days of purchase when you leave. Expect roughly 11% of the invoice back on most goods (8% on some categories), minus a small agency fee.

The three steps

1. At the shop — get the paperwork. Buy at a store displaying the tax-refund sign (退税商店 / Tax Refund). Show your passport at checkout and ask for the Application Form for Departure Tax Refund plus the VAT invoice (fapiao, 发票). Check that your name, passport number, items, and amounts match the goods.

2. At departure — customs verification. Before check-in, go to the customs verification counter with the goods, the application form, the invoice, and your passport/ID. Customs checks the goods against the paperwork and stamps the form. Keep goods sealed and unused until this point — opened or consumed items can be rejected.

3. After the stamp — collect the refund. Take the stamped form to the refund agent's counter (usually inside the departure restricted area, near customs). Choose cash (up to ¥20,000), bank transfer, or mobile payment. Refunds are paid in RMB.

Instant refund (即买即退): money back at the shop

At participating stores you can get the refund on the spot: sign an agreement, complete a credit-card pre-authorization as a guarantee, and receive the refund amount immediately. You must still complete customs verification when you depart, within the promised window — 28 days under the 2026 rules. If you miss verification or don't depart as agreed, the pre-authorized amount is charged back to your card.

Conditions and limits (verified baseline, 2026-10-10)

• Who: foreign nationals and Hong Kong/Macau/Taiwan compatriots with no more than 183 consecutive days of residence in mainland China.
• Threshold: the same traveler, same day, same store, purchases of refundable items totaling ¥200+.
• Timing: departure date no more than 90 days after the purchase date.
• Goods: must be unused and unconsumed, carried out by the traveler personally or in checked luggage. Prohibited/restricted exit items don't qualify; neither do goods already covered by VAT exemption.
• Rates: 11% refund rate for goods subject to 13% VAT; 8% for goods subject to 9% VAT.
• The math: refundable VAT = invoice amount (incl. VAT) × refund rate; actual refund = refundable VAT − agency service fee. In Shanghai the agency fee is publicly set at 2% of the invoice amount — rates elsewhere vary, so confirm locally.
• Cash cap: refunds up to ¥20,000 can be paid in cash; above that, bank transfer only.

Not yet verified — check before you rely on it

• The current cross-region list of participating stores and instant-refund locations (expanding through 2026; the national departure-tax-refund information platform is the authoritative lookup).
• Exact agency fee rates by city — the 2% figure above is Shanghai's published rate, not a national rule.

Related shopping advice

• Always ask for the fapiao (发票) at purchase — no invoice, no refund.
• Don't pack refund goods in checked luggage before customs verification. At airports, verify first, then check in.
• Build refund stops into your departure-day schedule: allow roughly an hour at the airport for verification and collection.