2026 Export Tax Refund Declaration Process and Precautions for Trading Companies

2026 Policy Interpretation and Implementation Guide for Export Tax Refund Declaration of Trading Companies

I.Analysis of Core 2026 Export Tax Refund Policies

In 2026,the State Taxation Administration launched three key adjustments for the foreign trade industry.Ms.Tan,senior tax refund consultant at Zhongshen,points out that these changes directly affect the declaration efficiency and actual revenue of enterprises.

• Dynamic Export Tax Refund Rate Adjustment List: The tax refund rate for 12 categories of products including electromechanical products and new energy vehicle parts is increased from 13% to 17%,while that for traditional textile and light industrial products remains at 13%.The *Export Tax Refund Rate Adjustment List* is updated on the 1st of each month,and enterprises shall match the corresponding tax rate according to the export date;
• Full Coverage of Digital Declaration: Data interconnection between China Electronic Port and the taxation system has been realized.The "intelligent matching" function is added to the export tax refund module of the "Single Window",which automatically associates customs declaration forms,invoices and foreign exchange receipt data,and all paper materials are exempted from submission;
• Strengthened Authenticity Verification: The taxation authority has added a three-way data comparison of "logistics track - foreign exchange receipt - customs declaration",requiring enterprises to provide screenshots of transportation tracks and serial numbers of foreign exchange receipt bank statements.Inconsistent data will trigger manual verification.

II.Opportunities and Challenges Brought by Policy Changes to Trading Companies

These policies not only improve efficiency,but also put forward higher requirements for the compliance capability of enterprises.Manager Wang,head of a foreign trade enterprise in Shanghai,feedback that "previously we had to visit 3 departments for declaration.Now we don’t need to visit any,but a single wrong character in the data may lead to rejection of the application."

In terms of opportunities:

• The tax refund cycle is shortened from 15 working days to 7 working days,and the capital turnover efficiency of some enterprises is increased by 30%;
• The tax refund rate for high value-added products is increased.A new energy equipment trading company saw an increase of RMB 120,000 in tax refund in the first quarter of 2026;
• Digital declaration reduces paper materials,cutting administrative costs by 40%.

In terms of challenges:

• Small and micro enterprises lack sufficient digital operation capabilities,and about 20% of enterprises suffer from declaration delays due to inability to use the "intelligent matching" function of the "Single Window";
• Authenticity verification requires enterprises to associate logistics and foreign exchange receipt data,and some enterprises cannot declare in time due to delayed logistics documents;
• The tax refund rate list is updated dynamically.If enterprises fail to update product codes in time,they may miss the high tax refund rate of 17%.

III.How Zhongshen Agency Services Help Obtain Policy Dividends

In response to the pain points of enterprises,Zhongshen relies on more than 20 years of industry experience to create a full-process service of "policy matching - digital declaration - compliance verification".Mr.Yin,Business Director of Zhongshen,introduces that "we update the tax refund rate list every week and pre-audit data for enterprises in advance".

A garment trading company entrusted Zhongshen to handle the declaration in March 2026.Zhongshen found in advance that some of its knitted product codes were eligible for the 13% tax refund rate (the enterprise had previously applied for the wrong 9% rate),which brought an extra tax refund of RMB 32,000,and the refund was credited only 6 working days after declaration.

IV.Practical Suggestion: Sort Out Associated Data 10 Working Days in Advance

Supervisor Fan,head of Zhongshen’s tax refund service,suggests that enterprises should focus on data relevance for 2026 export tax refund declaration,and sort out the following materials within 10 working days after export:

• Export goods customs declaration form (confirm that the goods name and code are consistent with the contract);
• Special VAT invoice (the deduction copy shall be scanned clearly,and the interval between invoicing date and customs declaration date shall not exceed 30 days);
• Logistics and transportation documents (the bill of lading shall include the shipping company name and container number for logistics track tracing);
• Foreign exchange receipt voucher (the bank slip shall indicate that the received foreign exchange amount is consistent with that on the customs declaration form; declaration form shall be provided for cross-border RMB settlement).

If enterprises cannot complete data association,they can entrust Zhongshen to conduct pre-audit in advance to avoid declaration delays caused by data mismatch.