285% overseas visitors have applied for departure tax refunds in the first 11 months against the same period of the previous year, while the sales of refund-eligible goods and the refund grew by 98.8%.

The number of tax-refund stores has expanded rapidly to better meet consumers’ demand. Till now, departure tax-refund outlet stores have been established through 28 provinces, autonomous regions, or municipalities nationwide, with five more regions granted this year, including Dalian city, and four provinces of Hubei, Jilin, Guizhou, and Inner Mongolia by the end of November, the number of outlet stores reached 12,252, out of which 9,151 stores were established this year. Over 7,000 stores offer an instant tax refund service for more overseas visitors.

The categories of goods are more diverse, along with the escalation of the consumption structure. From January to November, 329 categories of goods were sold at departure tax refund stores, including 84 categories compared to the same period last year, by nearly 40%. Chinese brands and trendy products are highly favored by overseas visitors. Sales and tax refund amounts for Chinese tech products, represented by smartphones, and traditional goods like silk and tea, have all seen multiple-fold growth.

The departure tax refund service has been improved with various  efficient ways and provides a better consumption experience. Tax authorities presented comprehensive consultation services for overseas visitors through measures such as the 12366 hotline with multilingual intelligent consultation, “Departure Tax Refund Guides” in 17-language versions, over ten thousand promotional videos and graphics, and over a thousand online/offline training sessions.