For Chinese passport holders and overseas Chinese planning trips abroad in 2026 — a plain-language briefing on which popular destinations are visa-free, and how tourist tax refund works destination by destination (thresholds, rates and methods), with the official sources to confirm before you buy.
One row per destination: entry rule for an ordinary Chinese passport, the consumption tax, the minimum spend to qualify, the effective refund after fees, and how you actually get it. "Actual refund" is the money back after operator commissions — not the headline tax rate.
| Destination | Entry (Chinese passport) | Tax / rate | Min. spend | Actual refund | Refund method |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🇹🇭Thailand | Visa-free 30 days (≤90 days / 180) | VAT 7% | ≥2,000 THB same store/day; ≥5,000 THB cumulative | ~4%–6.1% | Airport cash / card (paper P.P.10) |
| 🇸🇬Singapore | Visa-free 30 days; SGAC within 3 days | GST 9% | ≥100 SGD same store/day (≤3 receipts merged) | ~7%–9% | eTRS kiosk: Alipay (fee-free, instant) / card / cash |
| 🇲🇾Malaysia | Visa-free 30 days; MDAC | SST (not refunded) | — | ❌ No tourist refund | — |
| 🇯🇵Japan | Visa required (single / 3-yr / 5-yr multi, e-visa) | Consumption tax 10% | ≥5,000 JPY same store/day, same category | ~10% in-store | In-store deduction; from Nov 2026 airport refund |
| 🇰🇷South Korea | Jeju visa-free 30 days (direct only); mainland group-tour pilot (until Jun 2026) | VAT 10% | ≥15,000 KRW (≥75,000 needs customs stamp) | ~5%–7% | In-store instant discount / airport kiosk cash |
| 🇦🇪UAE | Visa-free 30 days | VAT 5% | ≥250 AED per transaction | ~4%–5% | Planet kiosk: WeChat / Alipay instant / cash / card |
| 🇶🇦Qatar | Visa-free 30 days | No VAT | — | ❌ No refund | — |
| 🇹🇷Turkey | Visa-free from 2 Jan 2026 (≤90 days / 180) | VAT 20% | Low threshold (≈ hundreds of lira) | ~8%–12% | Airport counter (Global Blue / Tax Free Turkey) |
| 🇫🇷France | Schengen visa | VAT 20% | ≥100.01 EUR same store/day | ~12%–13% | Global Blue / Planet: card (recommended) / cash / Alipay |
| 🇮🇹Italy | Schengen visa | VAT 22% | ~70–155 EUR (adjusting) | ~13%–15% | Same as above |
| 🇩🇪Germany | Schengen visa | VAT 19% | ~25–50 EUR (lowest in Europe) | ~10%–14% | Same as above |
| 🇪🇸Spain | Schengen visa | VAT 21% | ~90 EUR | ~12%–15% | Global Blue / Innova |
| 🇨🇭Switzerland | Schengen or Swiss visa | VAT 8.1% | ≥300 CHF (high) | ~5%–6% only | File when leaving Switzerland (non-EU) |
| Serbia / Bosnia / Albania / Belarus | Visa-free 30–90 days | VAT 17–25% | — | ❌ Immature refund system | — |
| Georgia / Kazakhstan / Uzbekistan / Morocco / Tunisia | Visa-free 30–90 days | — | — | ❌ No mature tourist refund | — |
Visa-free (or visa-on-arrival equivalent) for ordinary Chinese passports in 2026 includes Thailand (30 days), Singapore (30 days, SGAC required), Malaysia (30 days, MDAC required), the UAE (30 days), Qatar (30 days), Turkey (from 2 Jan 2026, 90 days / 180), and several Balkan / Caucasus / North African countries (Serbia, Bosnia, Albania, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Morocco, Tunisia). Japan, South Korea (mainland, outside the Jeju/direct-flight and group-tour pilots), and the European Schengen area still require a visa.
By effective refund after fees and commissions: Italy is usually highest at about 13%–15% (best for luxury), Spain about 12%–15%, Turkey about 8%–12%, Singapore about 7%–9% (Alipay is fee-free and instant), France about 12%–13%. Lower-yield destinations are Thailand (about 4%–6.1%), South Korea (about 5%–7%) and the UAE (about 4%–5%). Germany typically returns about 10%–14% and Switzerland only about 5%–6% because of its high threshold.
Yes. You must show the original passport at the point of sale so the store can open or register the refund form (for example Singapore's eTRS is recorded at payment and cannot be back-filled later). Keep the form, the receipt and the unused goods together — Customs matches them on departure.
Until now Japan gives in-store consumption-tax exemption (10%) at checkout for same-store, same-day purchases of at least 5,000 JPY, with general goods and consumables sealed and separated. From November 2026 Japan switches to a "pay the tax first, refund at the airport" model closer to Europe's. Rules differ before and after the transition, so check the new procedure if you travel around year-end 2026.
Yes. Malaysia abolished GST in 2018 and its current SST is not refunded to tourists; Qatar has no VAT so there is nothing to refund; the UK ended tourist shopping VAT refund from 2021. Many visa-free countries (Serbia, Bosnia, Albania, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Morocco, Tunisia) have no mature tourist-refund system, so simply pay local prices. The Maldives adds an 8%–12% service charge plus a 10% TGS tourism tax instead of a shopping refund.
The numbers, thresholds and pilot scopes above are a 2026 snapshot compiled from each destination's tax / customs authority and cross-checks. Before you buy or book, confirm the current rule on the official source for that country.
Cross-checks also drew on non-European refund comparisons (AppSavvyTraveller, Sep 2026) and operator partnership tables (Global Blue / Planet). Individual thresholds for Italy and Germany were in an adjustment period at the time of writing and are shown as ranges.