Instant Refund Policy One Year: Tax Refund Numbers Soar
Summary
The State Taxation Administration reports that China's nationwide instant tax refund service for departing foreign tourists has completed its first year of full implementation since April 2025. The number of refund applicants increased 12.96 times year-over-year, while refund sales and amounts grew 9.35 times. The network of participating stores offering instant refunds has expanded to over 8,000, surpassing the pre-expansion baseline by more than 100 percent.
Retailers operating in areas where the departure tax refund policy applies may benefit from the growing influx of international tourists seeking immediate on-site refunds. Beijing, Sichuan, and Shenzhen have each introduced enhanced service features including city-wide processing, QR code submission, Hong Kong WeChat wallet integration, and digital yuan hard wallet options.
“截至目前，该措施已平稳实施满一周年。一年来，离境退税“即买即退”措施有效激发入境消费活力，全国办理人数同比增长12.96倍，退税销售额和退税额同比增长9.35倍，业务规模实现快速增长。”
About this source
GovPing monitors China STA News for new tax regulatory changes. Every update since tracking began is archived, classified, and available as free RSS or email alerts — 7 changes logged to date.
What changed
The document summarises the outcomes of China's instant tax refund (即买即退) service for departing foreign tourists at the one-year mark of full national rollout. No new regulatory obligations are created; the document reports that over 8,000 stores now participate (up more than 100 percent from launch) and that applicant and transaction volumes have grown substantially. Beijing, Sichuan, and Shenzhen are highlighted for introducing service enhancements such as city-wide processing, QR code submission, Hong Kong WeChat wallet integration, and digital yuan hard wallet options.
Retailers in regions covered by the departure tax refund scheme that are not yet participating may consider whether to register as designated refund stores to attract international customers. Tax authorities indicate continued expansion of service scenarios and optimisation of processes to support inbound consumption and openness.
Archived snapshot
Apr 27, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
离境退税“即买即退”措施全面实施一周年 便利化体验激发入境消费活力 退税人数和退税额增长迅速 时间： 2026-04-27 来源：国家税务总局办公厅 访问量： 1 【字体: 大 中 小 】
打印 分享到： 为落实党中央、国务院促消费的决策部署，进一步提升境外旅客购物离境退税便利水平，优化境外旅客消费体验，2025年4月，我国在全国范围内全面推广离境退税“即买即退”服务措施。截至目前，该措施已平稳实施满一周年。一年来，离境退税“即买即退”措施有效激发入境消费活力，全国办理人数同比增长12.96倍，退税销售额和退税额同比增长9.35倍，业务规模实现快速增长。
离境退税“即买即退”，是指在已实施离境退税政策的地区，境外旅客在“即买即退”商店购买退税物品时，签订协议书并办理信用卡预授权后，即可在该商店现场申领与退税款等额的人民币。国家积极鼓励符合条件的退税商店提供“即买即退”服务，税务部门会同相关部门大力推动，目前，全国提供“即买即退”服务的退税商店已超8000家，较该服务措施一年前全国推广之初，增幅超100%。随着“即买即退”服务覆盖范围的不断扩大，更多境外旅客现场购物时，可即时拿到退税款用于二次消费，有效激发了消费需求。
一年来，在税务总局的统筹指导下，各地税务部门积极探索，“即买即退”服务实现提质升级。比如，北京推出“即买即退”全城通办，打破空间限制，旅客可在全城任一家退税商店购物后，就近选择集中退付点办理退税。四川推出“码上退”二维码退付服务，境外旅客仅需拍照上传退税申请单、有效身份证件、购物发票等，就可以快速完成退税服务，即时收到退税款。深圳拓展多元化电子退付体系，创新推出“跨境支付通”实时到账微信香港钱包服务，新增“数字人民币硬钱包”退付方式（即境外旅客完成退税流程后，可选择将退税款直接领取为一张面值等额的数字人民币硬钱包卡片，不仅免去找零繁琐，还能直接在境内进行二次消费、乘坐公共交通等），构建“多元选择、灵活适配、便捷高效”的退付服务场景。
中央财经大学财政税务学院院长樊勇认为，离境退税“即买即退”服务措施的推广落地，有效激发了入境消费活力，是我国持续优化国际化营商环境的重要成果，客观上也有力促进了本土品牌走向国际舞台。
国家税务总局有关司局负责人表示，下一步，税务部门将继续落实落细离境退税政策措施，不断拓展服务场景、优化服务流程、提升服务质效，更好满足境外旅客购物离境退税需求，为扩大入境消费、服务高水平对外开放提供有力支撑。
网站纠错 责任编辑： 范焱焱 扫一扫在手机打开当前页
- 相关链接
Related changes
Get daily alerts for China STA News
Daily digest delivered to your inbox.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime.
About this page
Every important government, regulator, and court update from around the world. One place. Real-time. Free. Our mission
Source document text, dates, docket IDs, and authority are extracted directly from China STA.
The summary, classification, recommended actions, deadlines, and penalty information are AI-generated from the original text and may contain errors. Always verify against the source document.
Classification
Who this affects
Taxonomy
Browse Categories
Get alerts for this source
We'll email you when China STA News publishes new changes.
Subscribed!
Optional. Filters your digest to exactly the updates that matter to you.