MasterCard has created a new service allowing Chinese travellers to claim tax refunds after they have returned from their holiday.
In partnership with China’s HNA Transforex Currency Exchange Company, MasterCard’s new platform brings together seven global tax refund groups in an effort to make it easier for Chinese travellers to claim tax refunds.
Chinese travellers leave as much as EUR3 billion (US$3.9bn) worth of tax refunds unclaimed, and MasterCard says the new facility will negate the “long-existing tax-refund claiming hassles, including language barriers, long queues at the refund offices and overly complicated procedures”.
“The MasterCard-Transforex tax refund platform will make tax refund much easier for Chinese travellers and reduce their financial losses. In addition, it will bring special privileges to MasterCard cardholders,” it added.
To claim their tax refunds, Chinese travellers need to stamp their tax refund forms upon departure. Once back home, shipping company SF Express will collect Chinese travellers’ tax refund forms from their homes and courier them to the platform. MasterCard is promising that payment will be made within three days, with the tax refunds being credited to the cardholder’s MasterCard account.
“MasterCard aims to provide the best payment products and services for Chinese cardholders when they travel around the world,” said Dennis Chang, MasterCard’s head of China. “The partnership with Transforex will make overseas travel and shopping of a MasterCard cardholder even more priceless, as it adds a seamless and rewarding tax-refund solution on the already global interoperable and secured payment experience created by MasterCard.”
The refund scheme has been launched in partnership with seven tax groups, including Global Blue, Innova Taxfree, Premier Tax Free, Tax Free Worldwide, N Tax Free, Global TaxFree and Travel Tax Free SLU. It covers more than 50 countries and around 420,000 retailers in Europe and Asia.
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