We understand you have to spend at least $35 per shop to apply to get the vat back. Can you get it back from car rentals and hotels too or only when shopping? If you can get it back from all of the above what is the best plan of attack to accomplish this and how much extra time should we allow at the airport at the appropriate office? Do you need to ask each establishment for certain papers as well? Thanks for any clarity on this subject.
Posted by
Calgary
2297 posts
The key is that you have to take the goods you purchase outside the European Union. You can't do that with accommodation, transportation, restaurants, etc.
Posted by
Portland
3643 posts
Actually, I think that most shops that participate in the refund program require you to spend a lot more than $35. You need to carry your passport when shopping, so that they can fill out the paper work You collect all the papers and bring them, along with the purchases, to an office in the last EU airport you fly from. You must be prepared to show the purchases and be sure that they haven't been used. When we've done it, it hasn't been inordinately time consuming. After the official paperwork is completed, you can mail it to the agency that provides the refunds, or, at least sometimes, get cash on the spot. My preference to to take the option of an immediate cash refund, despite the fee exacted for that convenience.
Posted by
Oak Park, Illinois
4535 posts
VAT refunds are only for goods purchased and not used in the EU or country of origin. And generally it is for expensive items. $35 may be a minimum, but frankly it isn't worth the trouble and hassle for items less than a few hundred dollars. And often the easiest and best way to avoid the VAT is to have the merchant ship it direct to you.
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
The minimum purchase for a VAT refund varies from country to country. No way would it be $35, because no EU country has a currency that uses the symbol '$'!
The shop may also impose a minimum.
The official and legal set of rules are here: http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/common/travellers/leave_eu/vat_refund_index_en.htm
As others have said:
- You have to export the goods unused and intact. So no refund on car rentals, hotels, restaurants or any other item you have opened.
- You must be a resident outside the EU.
- The paperwork is stamped when you leave the EU (not when you leave the country they were purchased in), and you have to have the goods on you in case the customs asks to see them. This can be at an airport, seaport or a land border
P.S: VAT = Value Added Tax, it is just 'VAT'. not 'VAT Tax'.
Posted by
Oak Park, Illinois
4535 posts
No way would it be $35, because no EU country has a currency that uses the symbol '$'!
It's always assumed that there is a conversion - for many people it is just easier to think in US dollars.
Posted by
Green Bay
21164 posts
You also do not get the full amount of VAT when you take the goods with you. We just did this, and I believe it was about 12% out of the total 19% in Germany. The other 7% goes to processing. If you buy a big ticket item that the merchant ships directly to your home, he/she can take off the full 19%, but also charges you the shipping. That extra 7% may just about cover the shipping cost.
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
Sam, don't forget that the 19% VAT is 19% of the net price, not the gross price.
If the price of something is €100, that is €84.03 net price, + 19% VAT (€15.97) = €100.00.
So if you got 12% back (€12 on €100) you have only lost about 4%.
Some places do not charge for processing and give the full VAT amount back; but that may involve going back to the shop to get your refund, not using another company as a refund service, so it may not be practical for most travellers.