Connect & Solve
Trade Q&A
What Core Documents Are Required for 2026 Export Tax Refund Declaration?
or complex compliance issues.
clearance and fund security.
I run a cross-border e-commerce B2C business, mainly selling home goods to Europe. Recently I heard that many peers have saved a lot of costs through export tax refund, but I have never dared to try it. I heard from a friend before that the tax refund process is complicated, and I am worried that I do not meet the eligibility, and I will get audited if I declare incorrectly.
I just upgraded to general taxpayer last year, and I have input invoices for goods purchased from factories, but I don't know if this meets the requirements. My goods are shipped via Amazon FBA, can I apply for tax refund under this model?
Recently my order volume has grown rapidly, and I am under great capital pressure. Getting the tax refund would ease a lot, so I want to know whether I am eligible for tax refund in my case, what materials I need to prepare, and what pitfalls I need to avoid?
Michael ZhangYears of service：6Customer Rating：5.0
Customs Declaration & Compliance ExpertStart a Chat
First confirm tax refund eligibility: Under the cross-border e-commerce B2C model in 2026，a general taxpayer enterprise that exports goods (complying with customs supervision requirements) and obtains legal input invoices can apply for tax refund. For your case — general taxpayer + valid input invoices + FBA shipment (requires customs declaration under 9710/9810 mode)，you meet the basic eligibility requirements.
Core Document Preparation: Customs Declaration Form (must indicate 9710/9810 supervision method)，Special Input VAT Invoice (goods name consistent with that on the customs declaration form)，Export Invoice (issued based on FOB price)，and bill of lading (FBA first-mile transport document). Note that the issuing date of the input invoice must be within 60 days before the export date stated on the customs declaration form，otherwise the tax refund processing may be affected.
Process Coordination: The first step is pre-declaration，upload document information via the electronic tax bureau，and submit formal declaration after passing verification，the second step is review by the tax authority，which focuses on checking "consistency of four flows" (capital flow，cargo flow，invoice flow，contract flow)，the third step is tax refund disbursement，which will be credited to your account within 15-20 working days after approval.
Exception Handling Plan: If "document inconsistency" is identified during review，you need to supplement and correct relevant materials within 3 working days，if you receive a tax correspondence investigation，you need to cooperate to provide procurement contracts，logistics certificates and other materials to prove authenticity.
Compliance Implementation: It is recommended to entrust a professional foreign trade agency to provide assistance. They can help you standardize the customs declaration mode，verify document completeness，and avoid tax refund failure caused by minor errors.
Linda GaoYears of service：7Customer Rating：5.0
Documentation SupervisorStart a Chat
From the perspective of customs declaration, the key to tax refund under cross-border e-commerce B2C model is the correct selection of supervision method. For FBA shipments, you need to declare customs under mode 9710 (cross-border e-commerce B2B direct export) or 9810 (cross-border e-commerce export to overseas warehouse). If you use general trade mode (0110), you cannot enjoy the cross-border e-commerce tax refund policy.
The goods name, HS code and quantity on the customs declaration form must be consistent with those on the input invoice, otherwise it will trigger a customs valuation dispute. In addition, the overseas warehouse address must be indicated in the remark column of the customs declaration form to facilitate the tax authority to verify cargo flow. If there is a mistake in the supervision method during customs declaration, you need to apply for deletion and re-declaration within 30 days after the export date, otherwise it cannot be remedied.
Eric ZhouYears of service：6Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Manager of Foreign Exchange & Tax RebatesStart a Chat
From the perspective of tax planning, as a general taxpayer, your exported goods are applicable to the VAT exemption, deduction and refund policy. Note that the deduction copy of the input invoice must be used for tax refund declaration within 3 months after passing authentication, otherwise it cannot be deducted. In addition, if you have an overseas warehouse in Europe, you need to pay attention to the connection between the local VAT policy and domestic tax refund to avoid double taxation.
It is recommended to adopt the "VAT deferral" mode, which allows you to temporarily defer VAT payment in the importing country while applying for domestic tax refund to optimize your capital flow. However, you must ensure that the sales data of goods in the overseas warehouse is consistent with the domestic customs declaration data to avoid doubts from the tax authority.
Lucas LiuYears of service：8Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Operations ConsultantStart a Chat
Foreign exchange collection and payment compliance is a prerequisite for tax refund. If you collect payments via Amazon, you need to remit the foreign exchange to your domestic corporate account and complete foreign exchange verification within 30 days after collection. If you use a third-party payment platform (such as PayPal), you need to ensure that the platform can provide compliant collection certificates for the tax authority to verify capital flow.
In addition, if you have an offshore account, you need to avoid opaque capital return, and it is recommended to use the CIPS system for cross-border RMB payments to improve the compliance of foreign exchange collection and payment. If there is a difference between the collected amount and the amount declared on the customs declaration (such as deduction of platform service fees), you need to indicate it during declaration and provide the service fee invoice as proof.
Jason WuYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
International Logistics & Supply Chain ManagerStart a Chat
Tax refund audit focuses on checking the "consistency of four flows". You need to prepare procurement contracts (signed with factories), logistics contracts (signed with freight forwarders), and export contracts (signed with Amazon or overseas warehouses), to ensure that contract subjects, cargo information and amounts are consistent.
In addition, document filings must be kept for at least 5 years, including copies of customs declaration forms, copies of input invoices, logistics documents, collection certificates, etc. If the tax authority launches a correspondence investigation, you need to respond within 10 working days and provide scanned copies of the original documents, otherwise the tax refund review will be suspended. It is recommended to regularly self-inspect your document filing to avoid tax refund failure caused by document loss.
Andy GuoYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Supply Chain Management ExpertStart a Chat
From a legal perspective, you need to ensure that all contract clauses meet tax refund requirements. The procurement contract must clearly specify the export purpose of the goods, and avoid any wording of "domestic sales"; the logistics contract must indicate that the transportation method is "export to overseas warehouse"; the export contract must clearly specify the FOB price, which is the basis for tax refund calculation.
In addition, if you entrust a freight forwarder to handle customs declaration, you need to stipulate a "customs declaration data authenticity" clause in the entrustment contract to avoid legal risks caused by the freight forwarder's mistake. If you encounter a tax refund dispute, you can claim liability from the relevant party according to contract terms, but you must keep all evidence (such as chat records and emails).
Kevin LinYears of service：4Customer Rating：5.0
Trade Solutions ManagerStart a Chat
During on-site inspection, customs will check the consistency between the goods and the customs declaration form. You need to ensure that the shipping mark on the goods packaging is consistent with that on the customs declaration form, and the goods characteristics corresponding to the HS code match (such as material and use).
If the goods are selected for inspection, you need to cooperate with customs to provide procurement invoices, product specifications and other supporting materials. In addition, if the goods are fragile, you need to use packaging that meets international standards to avoid inspection failure caused by unqualified packaging. It is recommended to entrust a professional institution to conduct pre-inspection before shipment to identify and correct problems in advance.