Issuing Authority: Department of Consumption Promotion  

Document Number: MOFCOM Consumption Development [2025] No. 84  

Date of Issuance: April 26, 2025

To the People's Governments of Provinces, Autonomous Regions, and Municipalities directly under the Central Government, and the separate planning cities, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the People's Bank of China, the General Administration of Customs, the State Taxation Administration, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the Financial Regulation Administration, the National Immigration Administration, and the Civil Aviation Administration of China:

In order to thoroughly implement the decisions and plans of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council, better meet the tax refund needs of foreign travelers shopping in China, further enrich market supply, optimize tax refund services, and expand inbound consumption, with the consent of the State Council, we now issue the following notice on relevant matters:

I. Increasing the Number and Capacity of Departure Tax Refund Stores

(1) Optimize the layout of departure tax refund stores.** Encourage regions to add tax refund stores in large commercial areas, pedestrian streets, tourist attractions, resorts, cultural and museum venues, airports, passenger ports, and hotels to expand the coverage of tax refund stores. Actively guide international brands, domestic popular products, time-honored shops, cultural and creative stores, souvenir stores, gift shops, and specialty stores to become tax refund stores. Support regions with conditions to create a number of characteristic streets for departure tax refunds.

(2) Relax the registration conditions for departure tax refund stores.** Expand the registration conditions for tax refund stores from the current tax credit levels A and B to include level M. Allow newly opened stores to become tax refund stores if they meet other relevant regulations. Optimize the registration process for tax refund stores, so that qualified stores can become tax refund stores after registering with their competent tax authorities. The competent tax authorities should complete the registration within 5 working days after receiving all the registration materials. Establish and improve the exit mechanism for tax refund stores and increase the punishment for illegal and irregular behaviors.

II. Enrich the Supply of Departure Tax Refund Goods

(3) Lower the tax refund threshold.** Foreign travelers who purchase tax refund items in the same store on the same day with a total value of RMB 200 or more, and who meet other relevant regulations, may apply for a departure tax refund.

(4) Improve the supply level of tax refund goods.** Guide tax refund stores to continuously enrich and optimize their product supply based on the needs of foreign travelers, increasing the supply of high-quality products such as time-honored products, well-known Chinese consumer goods, smart products, intangible cultural heritage products, fine arts and crafts, geographical indication products, cultural and creative products, famous and high-quality local specialties, and sports goods. Conduct "Shop in China" series of activities, support local areas in cultivating and creating high-quality characteristic products such as "City Gifts" and "Must-Buy Items," and guide them into tax refund stores.

III. Enhance the Service Level of Departure Tax Refunds

(5) Optimize the process of departure tax refund procedures.** Accelerate the improvement of the departure tax refund management system, optimize the login methods for stores, achieve automatic acquisition of invoice information, and enhance the intelligence and automation levels of information entry, comparison, and verification. Promote the "instant refund upon purchase" service nationwide, and encourage more tax refund stores and tax refund agents to provide this service. Encourage regions with conditions to set up centralized "instant refund upon purchase" payment points in large commercial areas, streets, and tourist attractions where foreign travelers are concentrated. Encourage regions with conditions to package and code tax refund items to facilitate customs' inspection without opening the packages. If customs have doubts during the verification process, they may open the packaging for further confirmation before proceeding with the verification procedures.

(6) Optimize the services of tax refund agents.** Encourage local areas to reasonably determine the service fee rates of tax refund agents based on the development of local tax refund business. Improve the evaluation mechanism for tax refund agents and actively introduce competitive mechanisms. Support tax refund agents in cooperating with currency exchange points and foreign traveler service centers in the departure port isolation areas to handle tax refund services. Support tax refund agents in conducting cross-regional operations and inter-agency cooperation. Encourage tax refund agents to strengthen cooperation with tax refund stores to provide good services for travelers, conduct employee training, and promote publicity.

(7) Optimize the payment services for departure tax refunds.** Increase the cash tax refund limit to RMB 20,000. Promote cooperation between tax refund agents and payment and clearing institutions to provide tax refund services through various methods such as mobile payments, bank cards, and cash, under controllable risks, to better meet the diverse payment needs of foreign travelers.

(8) Optimize the information services for departure tax refunds.** Build a national integrated information service platform for departure tax refunds and establish a data-sharing mechanism among departments to provide "one-stop" information services for foreign travelers, including inquiries about tax refund stores and tax refund business consultations. Strengthen the promotion of tax refund policies and outlets, optimize the unified tax refund logo and operating instructions, and increase publicity through inbound flights, airports, key media, social platforms, key travel agencies, and platform enterprises to make it easier for foreign travelers to obtain tax refund information. Strengthen inter-departmental cooperation, enhance the sharing of risk information, and crack down on illegal and irregular behaviors such as tax refund fraud and illegal resale.

Regions should improve working mechanisms, innovate working methods, and continuously improve the quality and level of departure tax refund services. Regions that have not yet implemented the departure tax refund policy should strengthen overall planning and start relevant work as soon as possible. This notice shall take effect from the date of issuance. Where there are inconsistencies between the previous regulations of relevant departments of the State Council and local people's governments and this notice, this notice shall prevail.

Ministry of Commerce  

Ministry of Finance  

Ministry of Culture and Tourism  

General Administration of Customs  

State Taxation Administration  

Civil Aviation Administration of China  

April 26, 2025

Source: https://www.mofcom.gov.cn/zwgk/zcfb/art/2025/art_a1609daf127b47c1aec0da459b76b331.html

Download Beijing Departure Tax Refund Guide for your reference.