Service Overview

As provincial tax authority-approved tax refund agent, Bank of China registers tax refund information and processes tax refunds for eligible outbound foreign visitors. At present, BOC provides tax refund services across many locations nationwide, including Beijing, Shanghai, Sichuan, Shaanxi, Tianjin, Hebei, Anhui, Shandong, Ningxia, Guangxi, Qingdao, Henan, Guizhou, Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, Hainan, Jilin, Jiangsu and Gansu.¹ 

Application Channels

BOC offers tax refund services at its dedicated counters at departure ports. BOC also provides "refund-upon-purchase" services for overseas visitors at  tax-refund-upon-purchase merchants in a number of locations, and centralized tax refund sites in Beijing and Shanghai.

After purchasing eligible items in a tax-refund-upon-purchase merchants, overseas visitors can enjoy "refund-upon-purchase" services by signing an agreement and granting credit card pre-authorization guarantee.

Required Documents

In order for any refund to be processed, overseas visitors must provide valid ID. Valid ID refers to passports, Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao residents, Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan residents, etc., which indicate or can collect the last entry date of overseas visitors.²

Qualifying Criteria

Visitors must personally carry or check in the goods when departing China via an approved departure port within 90 days of the purchase date and 183 days of their most recent entry date. The goods have not yet been used or consumed.

The amount of tax-refundable goods purchased by the same overseas visitor at the same tax-free store within the same day reaches 200 yuan ($28.28).

Tax refunds can be paid either in cash or through bank transfer. If the amount of the tax refund is no more than 20,000 yuan, either of the two tax refund methods may be chosen. If the amount exceeds 20,000 yuan, the tax refund shall be made through bank transfer.

Notes

1. The exact operation of relevant individual institutions falls within the remit of the prevailing local tax authority.

2. The required tax refund documents may vary in line with the specific requirements of individual local tax authorities.