A tax rebate system for overseas visitors has been launched in Shanghai. Anyone from outside the Mainland who has spent less than six months in China can get an 11 percent rebate on goods purchased at designated stores in Shanghai and Beijing.

Shanghai offers tax refunds to overseas visitors

A department store in Putuo District welcomed a Hong Kong traveler as soon as it opened at 9:30 a.m. He spent nearly 600 RMB on some silk scarves and then picked up a tax-refund application form. He will get the actual rebate after submitting the completed form at the airport when he leaves the Mainland. And interests from overseas tourists has some store managers looking to update their products.

City officials say they are studying whether to expand refund processing points from airports to railway stations or ports in the future. But some suggest the refunds should be made in the stores where good are purchased.Officials are reminding overseas visitors that the rebates are only valid for purchases made within 90 days of their departure from the Mainland.

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