(Yicai) May 19 -- China is overhauling its departure tax refund system to make it more convenient, more digital, and more widely available for overseas visitors in a bid to boost inbound consumption and support the retail and tourism sectors.

Eight new measures, including broader store coverage, simpler verification, and paperless handling, were announced by the commerce ministry and five other government agencies yesterday. They will come into effect on July 1.

Applications for tax refunds on sales of less than CNY10,000 (USD1,468) will be subject to random inspections rather than item-by-item physical verification, with only selected travelers needing to undergo customs checks.

This new sampling model will free up customs resources and shorten wait times at exit ports, making it easier for travelers to clear refunds quickly and depart, Securities Times cited Fan Yong, dean of the School of Public Finance and Taxation at Central University of Finance and Economics, as saying.

Paperless handling means that overseas visitors will be able to complete their refund applications by retrieving information from the system if they lose their physical application forms and invoices.

The “buy now, refund now” service will also be expanded from a pilot program to a nationwide mutual recognition system, so that overseas visitors will be able to get their money back immediately and use it for further consumption.

In addition, they will be allowed to complete the departure tax refund process at an exit port different from the one at arrival, and the departure period will be uniformly extended to 28 days, making it more convenient for foreign tourists visiting different cities to apply for refunds.

Departure tax refunds on sales nearly doubled last year from 2024, with the volume of sales roughly equivalent to the total for the previous 10 years, Vice Commerce Minister Sheng Qiuping said at a press conference yesterday.

Applicant numbers reached 270,000, a threefold annual increase, while the ranks of participating stores hit 14,000, roughly four times that at the end of 2024, according to Sheng.

The policy supports exports, retail and tourism, and gives consumption a stronger boost, he said.

Editor: Futura Costaglione