Vat Refund Bangkok

VAT Refund in Bangkok can be claimed on almost all shopping for foreign tourists visiting Bangkok during their holiday. The official regulations state that any foreign visitor staying less then 180 days in Thailand per year and is not part of any airline crew and leaves Thailand by plane from one of the international airports in Thailand is entitled to request a VAT refund on the majority of their shopping. This basically means that you can do some great tax free shopping in Bangkok. That's why VAT Refund Bangkok is so much appreciated by visiting tourists.

The VAT refund on your shopping is only applicable to items which you take out of Thailand within 60 days of the date of purchasing the goods. The refund is also only applicable on items purchased from a shop which displays a sign which reads: "VAT Refund for Tourists".

When making any purchases at one of the VAT refund Bangkok shops, please show your passport to the staff and request from them a special tourist P.P.10 form which needs to be filled out and attached to the original tax invoice. You need these documents as the customs officer at the airport will request for them.

One of the conditions on obtaining a refund is that any receipt from a participating VAT refund Bangkok shop is that its more then 2200 THB. The other requirement is that you would have receipts worth more then 5000 THB when claiming a VAT refund.

Please report to the special customs officers before you check in and prepare the items purchased as well as the receipts from the shops.

If you have made any valuable purchases such as gold, diamonds, antiques or any expensive consumer goods then you will have to present these items to the revenue officers at the VAT refund office at the Bangkok International Airport departure hall.

The VAT refund at Bangkok International Airport can be paid out in cash only if the amount that you are entitled to for the refund is less then 10,000 THB. If you would prefer that your credit card would be credited rather then receiving cash then this is also available as an option to you.

Any VAT refund for amounts over 10,000 THB you are not able to receive a cash refund as you would be required to choose for a refund to your credit card or a bank draft.

There are some small charges attached to the VAT refund. The customs officers will charge you 100 THB for any cash refund. The draft will be subject to a 100 THB charge as well plus any fees or charges that the banks might charge for the draft and the same applies to receiving credit on your card.

For information on shopping in Bangkok in general, please visit our Bangkok shopping section.