As of June, the number of departure tax refund stores in Sichuan has reached 454, and more than 100 of these stores can offer the "refund-upon-purchase" service, as the reporter recently learned from the Sichuan Provincial Tax Service, State Taxation Administration.

On April 27, the Ministry of Commerce and five other departments issued a series of measures to further optimize the departure tax refund policy and services; as such, the consumption enthusiasm of overseas tourists has been rising continuously.

SKP Chengdu is one of the malls that launched the departure tax refund service relatively early. Data shows that in the first half of this year, the mall handled 1,190 departure tax refund transactions in total, a 224 percent increase year-on-year. "In the first month after the new policy was implemented, the number of departure tax refund transactions we handled increased by 16 percent month-on-month," said the person in charge of SKP Chengdu. The mall launched the "refund-upon-purchase" service on the same day the new policy was released. Overseas tourists can complete tax refund procedures and receive their tax refund amounts on the spot after shopping at the mall, enhancing their shopping convenience and satisfaction, the person in charge added. "Two days ago, a tourist from the United States bought a women's backpack at the mall. The spending amounted to approximately 30,000 yuan. Thanks to the 'refund-upon-purchase' service, the tourist got a tax refund of around 2,000 yuan right away."

Apart from large shopping malls, many offline stores have also launched the departure tax refund service. The Xiaomi Mi Home Tianfu Jinzhan directly-operated store located at Tianfu Square in Chengdu is one of them. "In August 2023, the company submitted a unified application to initiate the departure tax refund service for Mi Home stores in Chengdu," said the relevant person in charge of the store. Under the new departure tax refund policy, the minimum threshold for tax refunds has been reduced from 500 yuan to 200 yuan. Overseas tourists who buy tax-refundable items worth 200 yuan or more in the same store on a single day and meet other relevant requirements can apply for a departure tax refund.

How can merchants become departure tax refund stores? Is there a threshold for the "refund-upon-purchase" service? A relevant official from the Import and Export Tax Administration Division of the Chengdu Tax Service explained that enterprises that meet the requirements and are interested in registering as tax refund stores can fill out the "Registration Form for Departure Tax Refund Stores for Overseas Tourists' Shopping" and submit it to the competent tax authority. Upon receiving the registration application, the competent tax authority will verify the registration conditions and complete the registration within five working days, and then issue a unified logo to the tax refund store. Meanwhile, should a tax refund store intend to provide the "refund-upon-purchase" service, once it reaches an agreement with Sichuan's tax refund agencies (currently, the Sichuan branches of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and the China Construction Bank) regarding matters like advance payments, it can become a "refund-upon-purchase" store.

In the second half of the year, the tax authorities will continue to make efforts in three aspects. First, the tax authorities will keep promoting the departure tax refund business to stores with market potential across the province, including internationally famous brands, trendy domestic products, and time-honored brands, making every effort to expand the number and variety of tax refund shops.

Second, the tax authorities will expedite the improvement of the diversified service models, such as "centralized tax refunds in business districts, in-store refunds at major retailers, and online tax refunds via QR code", and do their utmost to expand the coverage of the "refund-upon-purchase" service in participating stores. Efforts will be made to ramp up the implementation of the "refund-upon-purchase" pilots that enable cross-regional processing between Sichuan and Chongqing, so as to elevate the shopping refund experience for overseas tourists in Sichuan and Chongqing and help build an international consumer destination with Ba-Shu cultural characteristics.

Additionally, tax authorities will leverage the upcoming The World Games 2025 Chengdu to enhance promotion of the departure tax refund policy, and establish refund service points at key locations, including the athletes' village, major competition venues, and transportation hubs, with bilingual volunteers available to provide consulting services.