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What Documents Are Required and What Full Compliance Procedures Shall Be Followed for First-Time Export Tax Refund Processing?
or complex compliance issues.
clearance and fund security.
I am the owner of a small household goods factory in Shanghai. Last month, we received our first foreign trade order from Europe, and we have just shipped the goods. Now I need to process the export tax refund but have no idea where to start.
I heard from peers that it is very easy to make mistakes when processing tax refund for the first time. If handled improperly, not only will the tax refund be rejected, but we may also be subject to inspection by tax authorities. I only have the customs declaration form and input VAT invoice on hand now, and I don't even know which department to contact first or what supplementary materials to prepare.
I stayed up late last night looking for relevant information but only got more confused. I am very anxious, for fear of missing the tax refund deadline and affecting the subsequent capital turnover of the factory. I would like to ask how to process the refund step by step in compliance with regulations, and what easily overlooked details I should pay attention to?
Andy GuoYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Supply Chain Management ExpertStart a Chat
First，for pre-document verification details，three types of core documents shall be checked with priority: First，the customs declaration form. Ensure that the name，quantity and FOB price of exported goods are completely consistent with the actual shipped goods and the input VAT invoice. Special attention shall be paid to the accuracy of the commodity code，as incorrect code will directly lead to the rejection of the tax refund declaration. Second，the VAT input invoice. Certification shall be completed within 30 days after the invoice is issued，and the customs declaration number of the exported goods shall be indicated in the remark column of the invoice. Third，the ocean bill of lading or air waybill for exported goods. Copies of the original documents shall be kept for subsequent document filing.
The connection of core nodes shall follow the sequence of "customs declaration first，foreign exchange collection second，declaration last": Within 10 working days after the goods are exported，request the freight forwarder to provide the tax refund copy of the export customs declaration form affixed with the customs verification seal，Foreign exchange collection shall be completed within 90 days after export. If foreign exchange cannot be collected on time due to special circumstances，an application for extension shall be submitted to the competent tax authority in advance，The tax refund declaration shall be completed within the VAT declaration period in April of the following year from the date of export，and the declaration materials shall be submitted through the electronic tax bureau or the Single Window.
For abnormal contingency plans，if the error of "inconsistent document information" occurs during declaration，first check whether the electronic information of the customs declaration form has been synchronized to the tax system. If not，contact the customs to resend the information. If the input invoice fails the audit and comparison，contact the invoicing party to check the invoice information and re-upload the audit data.
After the formalities are completed in compliance with regulations，documents such as customs declaration forms，input VAT invoices，bills of lading，and foreign exchange collection slips shall be sorted into volumes by order，and kept for inspection for at least 5 years，to avoid the recovered tax refund due to failure to provide materials during subsequent tax inspections.
Michael ZhangYears of service：6Customer Rating：5.0
Customs Declaration & Compliance ExpertStart a Chat
In the customs declaration procedure for first-time export tax refund, special attention shall be paid to the accuracy of the pre-classification of commodity codes. If the pre-classification error leads to the inconsistency between the commodity code on the customs declaration form and the actual goods, it will not only affect the tax refund declaration, but also may trigger customs valuation or inspection. When declaring customs, documents such as detailed specifications, materials and uses of the goods shall be submitted to the customs to ensure that the pre-classified code matches the tax refund code library of the tax authority.
If a code error is found after customs declaration, an application for deleting the declaration and resubmitting shall be made within 15 days after the export of the goods, to avoid the failure of tax refund data synchronization to the tax system due to code differences. In addition, the "transaction method" on the customs declaration form shall be consistent with the trade contract. For FOB transactions, the freight and insurance premium shall be accurately filled in, otherwise it will affect the calculation of FOB price and thus reduce the tax refund amount.
Linda GaoYears of service：7Customer Rating：5.0
Documentation SupervisorStart a Chat
In the logistics procedure for first-time export tax refund, the accuracy of bill of lading information shall be strictly controlled. The name, quantity and shipping mark of the goods on the bill of lading shall be completely consistent with those on the customs declaration form, otherwise the tax refund filing documents will be inconsistent. After the goods are shipped, promptly request the freight forwarder to provide a copy of the original bill of lading or telex release bill of lading.
If telex release is selected, the telex release letter of guarantee and the telex release notice confirmed by the consignee shall be kept. In addition, attention shall be paid to the arrival time limit of the goods. If foreign exchange collection is delayed due to logistics delay, an application for extension of foreign exchange collection shall be submitted to the tax authority in advance, otherwise it will be deemed that no foreign exchange has been collected and tax refund cannot be processed. In case of container rolling or port change, the export date and transportation method on the customs declaration form shall be updated in time to ensure that the logistics information in the tax refund declaration is consistent with the actual situation.
Cindy ChenYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Key Account ManagerStart a Chat
For first-time export tax refund, the VAT deferral policy can be reasonably used to reduce capital occupation costs. If exporting to regions implementing VAT deferral such as the European Union, you can apply for VAT deferral at the time of export, so you don't need to pay import VAT in the importing country, and you can directly deduct the input tax amount through domestic export tax refund. In addition, attention shall be paid to the application of export tax refund rates. Different commodities have different export tax refund rates.
The tax refund rate of the commodity shall be confirmed before customs declaration. If the tax refund rate is 0, VAT shall be paid as per domestic sales. If the factory is a small-scale taxpayer and cannot apply for export tax refund, it can entrust a foreign trade agency company to process the tax refund, or choose to waive the tax refund and handle it as tax exemption, to avoid tax risks caused by illegal operations.
Lucas LiuYears of service：8Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Operations ConsultantStart a Chat
In the foreign exchange collection and payment procedure for first-time export tax refund, it is necessary to ensure that the capital flow is consistent with the goods flow and invoice flow. Foreign exchange shall be collected through formal cross-border payment channels (such as SWIFT or CIPS), and the amount of foreign exchange collected shall be consistent with the FOB price on the customs declaration form. If there is commission or discount, it shall be clearly indicated in the trade contract and listed separately when collecting foreign exchange.
If there is an exchange rate difference when collecting foreign exchange, the basis for exchange rate conversion shall be indicated when declaring the tax refund, and the RMB sales amount shall be converted using the central parity rate of RMB exchange rate on the first day of the export month. In addition, a copy of the original foreign exchange collection slip shall be kept. If the foreign exchange is collected by a third party, compliance certification materials for third-party foreign exchange collection shall be provided to avoid rejection of the tax refund declaration due to inconsistent capital flow.
Eric ZhouYears of service：6Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Manager of Foreign Exchange & Tax RebatesStart a Chat
For first-time export tax refund, the compliance of the trade contract shall be ensured. Core clauses such as the name, quantity, price, payment method and delivery date of the exported goods shall be clearly specified in the contract, and shall be consistent with the information on the customs declaration form and bill of lading.
If payment by letter of credit is adopted, soft clauses of the letter of credit, such as "payment shall be made only after the buyer confirms the sample", shall be avoided, otherwise it will lead to delay in foreign exchange collection and affect the tax refund declaration. In addition, a copy of the original trade contract shall be kept.
If the contract is in a foreign language, a Chinese translation with the official seal affixed shall be provided to avoid failure in tax inspection due to inconsistent contract information. If the goods are delayed or returned due to force majeure, relevant supporting materials shall be kept in time, and an application for tax refund extension or return tax refund shall be submitted to the tax authority.
Grace WangYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
Senior Foreign Trade ConsultantStart a Chat
In case of on-site customs inspection for first-time export tax refund, you shall cooperate with the customs to provide detailed information of the goods, such as samples, test reports, packing lists, etc., to ensure that the inspection results are consistent with the information on the customs declaration form. If the inspection finds that the goods are inconsistent with the customs declaration form, an application for modifying the customs declaration form shall be submitted in time, otherwise it will affect the document consistency of the tax refund declaration.
In addition, attention shall be paid to the authenticity of the seal. If the container seal is damaged during transportation, contact the freight forwarder and the shipping company in time to issue a seal damage certificate, to avoid inconsistency in tax refund filing documents due to cargo ownership issues. If the customs issues an inspection record after inspection, the record shall be kept for subsequent tax refund filing to ensure the integrity of tax refund materials.
Victor SunYears of service：5Customer Rating：5.0
Trade Risk Control ManagerStart a Chat
For first-time export tax refund, the principle of "four flows consistency" shall be strictly followed, that is, the goods flow, capital flow, invoice flow and contract flow are completely consistent. Inconsistency will trigger tax correspondence verification.
During tax correspondence verification, you shall cooperate with the tax authority to provide relevant supporting materials, such as cargo transportation vouchers, foreign exchange collection slips, trade contracts, etc. If you cannot provide them, the tax refund declaration will be suspended. In addition, pre-declaration shall be carried out before tax refund declaration. The pre-declaration function of the electronic tax bureau shall be used to check whether the document information matches.
If the pre-declaration fails, the declaration materials shall be modified in time to avoid rejection after formal declaration. After the tax refund is credited to the account, timely check whether the tax refund amount is consistent with the declared amount. If there is a difference, contact the tax authority for verification in time.
Jason WuYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
International Logistics & Supply Chain ManagerStart a Chat
For first-time export tax refund, cost optimization shall be carried out in combination with the supply chain structure. If the factory exports directly, it shall bear the costs of customs declaration, logistics, tax refund and other links by itself.
If it entrusts a foreign trade agency company to handle it, it can use the resources of the agency company to reduce operating costs. In addition, trade terms shall be selected reasonably.
If FOB terms are adopted, the buyer is responsible for transportation and insurance, which can reduce logistics costs, and the FOB price is easier to determine during tax refund calculation; if CIF terms are adopted, freight and insurance premiums shall be accurately calculated to avoid the reduction of tax refund amount due to incorrect FOB price calculation. At the same time, inventory and shipping time shall be reasonably planned to ensure that the goods are exported and foreign exchange is collected within the tax refund declaration period, so as to avoid failure to obtain tax refund due to timeout.