2026 Practical Guide and Policy Interpretation on Deduction Check for Export Tax Refund

2026 Deduction Check for Export Tax Refund: New Policy Changes and Enterprise Coping Strategies

Since 2026,among foreign trade enterprises in Shanghai and across the country,policy adjustments to the "deduction check" link in the export tax refund process have aroused widespread concern.Many financial directors of enterprises reported that in the past,the check operation was required to be completed 3 days in advance.After the deadline was relaxed,many enterprises encountered declaration delays due to unfamiliarity with the new rules.Ms.Tan from Zhongshen,a senior consultant with more than 20 years of experience in the foreign trade agency industry,has received many inquiries from enterprises recently,with most questions coming from small and medium-sized manufacturing export enterprises.

I.Core Analysis of 2026 Deduction Check Policy for Export Tax Refund

Compared with 2025,the 2026 adjustment of the deduction check policy for export tax refund mainly focuses on three directions,which Ms.Tan summarizes as "expanded scope,flexible time limit,accurate early warning":

• Check scope expanded to input tax of production equipment: In the past,manufacturing export enterprises could only check input tax of raw materials,packaging materials and other items directly used for export goods.Starting from 2026,input tax of new production equipment purchased by enterprises to improve production capacity can be included in the check scope if the equipment is used for production of export goods.Note: The equipment must be within the customs supervision period and has not enjoyed import tax exemption policy.
• Check deadline extended to the day of declaration deadline: In 2025,enterprises were required to complete the check 3 days before the deadline of export tax refund declaration.In 2026,the rule is adjusted to allow operation before 24:00 on the day of the declaration deadline; At the same time,a new "correct check within 15 days" function is added.If a check error is found after declaration,it can be modified and resubmitted within 15 days,without invalidating the original declaration.
• Automatic comparison and early warning between customs and tax data: The tax system and customs declaration data have achieved real-time sharing.When checking input invoices,the system will automatically compare whether the goods corresponding to the invoice have completed customs declaration and export.If there are abnormalities such as "goods on invoice not declared" or "declaration form not matched with invoice",an early warning prompt will pop up on the check interface.

II.Opportunities and Challenges Brought by Policy Adjustment to Export Enterprises

Ms.Tan analyzed based on the case of an auto parts export enterprise in Shanghai that she has served,and pointed out that the policy change brings dual impacts to enterprises:

At the opportunity level: In the first half of 2026,the enterprise purchased 2 new automatic welding equipment,with input tax of about 1.2 million RMB.According to the 2025 policy,this input tax could not be deducted.After being included in the check scope in 2026,the tax refund amount can be increased by about 1.2 million RMB,and the capital turnover efficiency is increased by nearly 20%; At the same time,the rule that allows check on the day of declaration deadline gives enterprise finance more time to check data,avoiding errors caused by early check.

At the challenge level: On the one hand,the accounting of equipment input tax needs to distinguish between "for export production" and "for domestic sales production".Unclear division may lead to tax audit; On the other hand,automatic early warning requires enterprises to pay attention to the check interface in real time.If abnormalities are not handled in time,the declaration may be rejected,delaying the arrival of tax refund.In addition,the finance staff of some small,medium and micro enterprises are not familiar with the "correct check" process,and are easy to miss the 15-day correction deadline.

III.Practical Service Solutions from Zhongshen

In response to the 2026 policy adjustment,Ms.Tan’s team at Zhongshen has customized three types of services for different types of enterprises,with the core goal of helping enterprises "calculate accurately,avoid risks,and get tax refund faster":

In addition,Ms.Tan’s team compiles "Case Library of Abnormal Deduction Check for Export Tax Refund" every month,and shares it with cooperative enterprises.For example,a clothing export enterprise received an early warning for checking an input invoice of "expired and not declared",and the team assisted it to correct within 15 days,avoiding tax refund delay.

IV.Practical Suggestions for Enterprises

Based on Ms.Tan’s experience,export enterprises in 2026 are suggested to focus on the following work:

Establish dual ledgers of "input invoice - customs declaration form": Enterprise financial staff need to establish input invoice ledger (marking invoice number,goods name,input tax amount,check status) and customs declaration form ledger (marking declaration number,export date,goods name,export amount) separately.Complete the preliminary matching and check of the two ledgers before the 25th of each month,and focus on two types of data: "equipment input tax" and "abnormal early warning invoice",so as to avoid errors caused by centralized processing on the declaration deadline.

With the advancement of foreign trade digitalization in 2026,the operation logic of deduction check for export tax refund will become more refined.If enterprises only rely on their own financial team to sort out policy details,they are easy to miss key points.Ms.Tan from Zhongshen said that the team will continue to track policy changes,provide more practical agency services for foreign trade enterprises in Shanghai and across the country,and help enterprises convert policy dividends into actual benefits.