You have spent all your money and now it is time to save some! We can hear you saying “How can I save money, when I have already spent all while shopping?” or “All brands now sell their products at the same value across countries. Buying here or there makes no difference.”. Well, don’t think that way. Because we saved a considerable amount of money by “not thinking that way”. You can get a 20% discount if you know how to claim tax free shopping. The easiest way is tax free shopping, for which the duty-free shops at airports is not your only option. Actually, you can claim tax refund for loads of goods you bought while wandering around on the streets of the city you visit. Travelers experienced in tax free shopping are probably experts of this procedure and they already know which form to fill, how to calculate the refund amount and rates, how much money must be spent to get a tax refund and how to claim it. If you still haven’t boasted about your shopping “achievements” abroad by saying “This is from Italy, dear…” or, “I bought this from a boutique in France honey, you can’t find it here…”, the following tips may be of use for you 🙂 Below, we will go step by step and explain how to claim tax free shopping and how to shop tax-free abroad.
By the way I want to make an important remark, since “tax free” and “duty free” are the most widely accepted similar words you may see both terms in real life. Now let’s start with some information about the tax free shopping procedure including its meaning, tax free ratios, places where you can claim tax refund, products eligible for tax free and the steps to claim tax free shopping.
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What is tax free shopping?
Suppose you’re in a foreign country and went shopping there. It will be okay if the money you spent there is not used for the funding of that country’s roads or public utilities, as you don’t live there. You can do more shopping with that money instead. That is where the tax free system comes in handy. Actually, the tax-free system is the formal and regulated version of asking the seller “Can I have a discount if I don’t ask for a bill of receipt?”.
We want to clarify one final thing though, to avoid leading to any misunderstanding after all this talk about tax free. Tax free shopping does not mean not paying the tax at all. You should first pay it and then you can claim a refund.
What are tax free ratios?
The tax free ratio changes according to the product you buy. You get a lower tax refund for products which are applied a lower VAT ratio. Tax ratios also vary from country to country.
As a result, it is not that easy to give a percentage on how much you will save by tax free shopping. For instance, tax ratios in Italy are 10 percent for food products, 4 percent for fruits and vegetables and 22 percent for other products. Whereas in Germany a standard of 19 percent tax is added to everything except for food and books, for which the ratio is 7 percent.
Where can I claim my tax free refund?
Most people think that tax free claim is only possible at airports, however it can also be claimed at city centers and some stores. To be honest, even we did not know this was possible until we got out of a store in Kaufhaus des Westens (KADEWE) department store in Berlin with shopping bags in our hands and saw a tax free desk straight ahead.
To learn where you can claim tax free shopping apart from the airport in the city you travel, you can check the tax free refund offices here.
What goods are eligible for tax free shopping?
Nearly all goods that can be carried in a baggage are eligible for tax free shopping. Thus you can get a discount for many goods from electronics, food and accessories to clothes. Thanks to the tax free shopping system, you can save almost 15% if you buy an watch, for instance.
Finally, after explaining some technical information about tax free shopping we are ready to share the most important part, how to claim tax free shopping in 8 steps.
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1. Choose a store to shop tax free
Make sure the store has a “Tax Free” or “Global Blue” logo on its window or pay desk. If there is no logo, you probably won’t be able to claim a tax refund for the things you buy at that store. Yes, we know, saying goodbye to that pretty pair of shoes is not easy but be strong! You can buy more shoes at a lower price from a tax free store.
2. Shop as you wish
Here comes the most fun part! We guess, you probably will not have a hard time at this step. The only possible difficulty may be not being let to enter the changing rooms with too many items. However, you have to be careful while selecting what to buy because there is a trick here. Of course it is not related to how stylish your combinations are, but to how much they cost. Because the tax refund you claim changes according to the total amount of your purchase. You have to reach a certain amount to be able to claim a tax free.
Currently, the minimum amount of purchase to claim tax free changes from country to country. You don’t have to reach that amount in only one bill, though. It is okay if the total amount of the purchases you made from the same store and on the same day exceeds the lower thresholds.
Minimum purchase thresholds to claim tax refund:
– Italy: €155
– Germany: €25
– France: €175
– United Kingdom: £30
– Switzerland: Fr.300
You can check the most up-to-date thresholds and tax refund refund ratios, here. By the way you can claim a refund not only for textile goods, but for many things ranging from books to food, clothes and sunglasses; with slight changes in the tax ratios.
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3. Fill in the tax free form
Your sales slip will not be enough to claim tax refund; you need to fill in a form about your purchase. You can request this form from the attendants at the store you purchase your items and you may need to fill in some parts yourself.
4. Keep enjoying your holiday 🙂
This step is also easy, with the most difficult part being the burden of maintaining self-control and not wearing the clothes you bought. You should at least make sure the price tags remain intact on the goods you bought, as the officials may want to check them.
5. Go to the customs desk at the airport, when it is time to leave
Here comes the trickiest part. If you do not plan to carry your tax free purchases in a hand baggage, you should go to the customs desk before you drop your baggage. Because customs officials usually check your documents (receipts and forms), passport and things you purchased to approve your tax free claim. So, you need to present these items at the customs desk before putting them in your baggage and dropping it at check-in.
Bear in mind that getting your documents approved and stamped may take some time. For instance, we were the only passengers waiting in the customs desk in Spain but we had to wait for the officials to come. We had to wait for the stamp procedure to be completed before checking in, as we had planned to put the clothes we bought into our luggage and we also needed our passports to check-in. As time passed by waiting for the officials at the desk, we felt under a lot of stress as we were running out of time to complete check-in.
6. Check-in for your flight
Complete your check-in before the desk closes. If you wish, you can drop off your purchases with your baggage but move fast. You still have things to do before getting on the plane to claim tax free.
7. Claim tax free refund
Now hurry to the desk of the tax refund company available at the airport. Global Blue has one of the broadest service networks throughout Europe so you’ll probably find their desk there. Simply follow the directions on the signboards to find their desk. When you arrive at the desk, present your stamped documents and receive your refund. Now, you have just shopped and saved at the same time! This must be the most fun way of saving 🙂
By the way, after you hurry to arrive at the desk as soon as possible, you may also see that both desks are open and there is no queue at all. We still recommend you to be cautious though. Because it is also possible to see a long queue twisting like a giant snake after taking your time to arrive at the desk and regret not having come earlier, like we once did in Italy. The queue was so long that we had to decide whether to forget about the tax free refund or to miss the flight. The result: We claimed tax free refund and galloped to the gate!
There’s one more thing to be aware of here: the time of your flight! If you are flying at night, desks of Global Blue or other tax refund companies may be closed by the time you arrive at the airport. In this case, you need to put all your documents in an envelope (you can find one somewhere near the desk) and then put the envelope in Global Blue’s mailbox by their desk. You can do this also when the queue is too long but remember, you won’t get your tax free refund immediately then. If you choose this method, a cheque will be sent to your address via mail. We tried this once and received our cheque months later, but then we lost the cheque in the house 🙂 So we recommend you complete the tax free refund procedure at the airport if the queue is not unbearably long.
8. Go to the duty-free shop
Now you can buy yourself and your loved ones nice perfumes, toys or spirits with the money you just received back.
We hope you find all this information about how to claim tax free useful. If you also wonder how you can save while traveling, find the cheapest flight dates or buy flight tickets at a cheaper price, we recommend you read our post containing tips for cost-effective holidays. We wish you a great holiday with plenty of shopping!