I recently purchased jewelry in Florence and was not charged VAT. I was on a cruise which started in Barcelona but ended in NYC. I was given a form for refund and told to have stamped at customs at the end of my trip. If this was not done, then my credit card would be charged 20% of purchase. When I arrived back in US and went through customs, I was informed that customs in US does not do but the documents had to be notarized and then filed with the post office. Has anyone had to do this, and if so, would you please tell me the exact process so I am sure to do correctly before the deadline of 21 days is expired. The form says it has to be stamped by EU customs, but on our cruise ship, the only customs was when we entered the US. Please assist.
Posted by
new york, ny, usa
2 posts
if you want to be reimbursed you need to go back to Europe, only customs at European borders can stamp that document, and before boarding in the cruise you should have had a custom place. Sorry...
Posted by
Port Townsend, WA
64 posts
Lana-I also purchased jewelry in Florence and was not charged VAT. The sales person explained thoroughly what the procedure was for not getting charged at a later date. My reciept was in an envelope that also explained that the "stamp" had to be obtained before I left Italy--with pictures and everything. Since I was flying out of Rome this had to be done at the Rome airport. What she did not tell me was that I had to have my boarding pass first, so I ended up waiting in line twice for this "stamp". It was a little confusing for the customs person, since I was not applying for a refund; however, they stamped my forms and mailed them for me before I flew home. I suppose you should have made it clear (to the sales person) that you were on a cruise ship, and asked where else besides the airport this could have been done. I think I would have asked the cruise ship folks too! They must have to deal with this frequently. I don't think there is anything you can do at this point--sorry.