Tax Free shopping in Italy. The procedure and nuances of obtaining Tax Free at the airports of Fiumicino (Rome), Bologna, Venice, Bergamo Tax free in Rome city

All tourists who are not residents of the Eurozone countries, Italy provides the right to receive TAX FREE. You can use this service if:

• make a purchase in stores where you will see company logos on the windows: Global Blue TAX FREE (the most popular), TAX REFUND or PREMIER tax free. If you do not see them, do not hesitate to ask the seller if they issue TAX FREE.

• make purchases with a single check for at least 154.94 euros. If you failed to pay for all purchases with one check, then when making several purchases on the same day in one store, you can add all checks to make up the minimum amount above.

Registration of TAX FREE:

At the checkout according to your passport, the seller will issue you a TAX FREE check. Carefully check if your details are correct: last name, first name, country of residence, address and passport number.

It is important to remember that the check for TAX FREE is valid only for 3 months!!!

Return TAX FREE:

METHOD #1: a tourist can return TAX FREE without waiting for the day of departure from the country at one of the offices of the above companies located in the center of Rome. You must have with you: checks for purchases, a passport, the purchases themselves in an unpacked form with all tags and price tags, a return ticket. The paperwork will be filled out and the money will be given to you. When leaving the country at the airport, you will need to stamp the previously issued checks at the customs office (in Italian Dogana) and present your purchases.

Addresses of points TAX FREE Global Blue in Rome:

• ACCORP FOREXCHANGE. Via del Lavatore 88/a. Opening hours: Mon-Sat 10.30-19.30, Sun 11.30-18.30. Max refund Money- 500 Euro.
• MACCORP FOREXCHANGE. Via del Caravita 6. Opening hours: Mon-Sat 10.30-19.30, Sun 11.30-18.30.
• MACCORP FOREXCHANGE. Piazza della Rotonda 68/b. Opening hours: Mon-Sat 9.00-20.30, Sun 9.30-20.00.

Addresses of TAX REFUND points in Rome:

• Best and Fast. Via Nazionale, 19. Opening hours: Mon-Sun 7.45-21.00.
• ROMA Via Veneto. Via Lazio, 10. Opening hours: Mon-Fri 9.30-19.00, Sat 9.30-13.00, Sun closed.
• ROME Piazza di Spagna. Piazza di Spagna, 38. Opening hours: Mon-Fri 9.00-17.30, Sat 9.00-12.30, Sun closed.
• ROME Piazza di Spagna. Piazza di Spagna, 80. Opening hours: Mon-Sun 9.30-20.00.

Addresses of PREMIER Tax Free points in Rome:

• Premier Tax Free. Via Gregoriana, 54. Opening hours: Mon-Fri 9.00-18.00.
• Forexchange. Via della Conciliazone, 43/A. Opening hours: Mon-Sun 8.30-20.00.
• Forexchange. Termini Train Station, opposite platform 4. Opening hours: Mon-Sun 7.00-20.00.
• Forexchange. Via del Caravita, 6. Opening hours: Mon-Sun 9.00-20.00.
• Bank of China. Via Barberini, 97/103. Opening hours: Mon-Fri 8.45-16.00.

METHOD #2. TAX FREE can be returned at Fiumicino Airport (Aeroporto nazionale Leonardo da Vinci Fiumiccino). In this case, I advise you to arrive early, because very often there is a long queue at the TAX FREE pick-up points.

The procedure for obtaining TAX FREE is as follows:

1. go to the passenger check-in desk and take boarding pass, tell the woman at the counter that you want to get TAX FREE, she shows you where the customs office is located (DOGANA in Italian).
2. after receiving your boarding pass, you take your luggage and go to the customs office. Things for which you want to return the tax, you need to prepare in advance so as not to waste time. Do not remove tags and price tags from them and do not unpack them.
3. the customs officer, at his discretion, may ask you to present all purchases according to the presented checks. If there are no questions, he will put a stamp on your checks.
4. with stamped checks, you go to the Global Blue TAX FREE, TAX REFUND or PREMIER tax free points, where you can receive money in cash immediately or on bank card within 3-5 working days. I advise you, until the transfer of money to your card, keep the papers that the customs officer will give you. If the money does not come, you will need to call back the number indicated on the papers to obtain information.

Customs (DOGANA) at Fiumicino Airport are located:

• in the center of the first floor. After passing through this customs, upon presentation of your boarding pass, you check in your luggage,
• in the center of the hall behind passport control. For orientation: pass the Salvatore Ferragamo boutique, then the bar, on the right you will see the TAX FREE points of issue of all the above companies, behind them there is a customs point. After passing through this customs, you pick up your things in the cabin of the aircraft.

TAX FREE Global Blue points at Fiumicino Airport are located:

• Global Blue Italia srl. Terminal 3, next to check-in desk 326. Opening hours: Mon-Sun 09.00-21.00. TAX FREE refund to credit card only.
• Global Blue Italia srl. Terminal 3 - Exit H1 (non-Schengen area). Opening hours: Mon-Sun 07.00-22.00. The maximum refund is 999.50 euros.
• Global Blue Italia srl. Terminal 5. Opening hours: Mon-Sun 07.00-12.00. The maximum refund is 999.50 euros.

TAX REFUND points at Fiumicino Airport are located:

• Terminal 3 (Check-in Area). Opening hours: Mon-Sun 7.00-22.00.
• Terminal 3 (Departures Area). Opening hours: Mon-Sun 7.00-22.00.
• Gate C20 (Departures Area). Opening hours: Mon-Sun 7.00-22.00.

PREMIER Tax Free points at the airport are located:

• Terminal 3 - Gate H1. Opening hours: Mon-Sun 7.00-22.00.
• Terminal 5. Opening hours: Mon-Sun 7.30-24.00.

Natalia Markhinina

Leaving Italy, many tourists bring with them not only small souvenirs, but also significantly replenish their wardrobe or purchase expensive interior items. They should know that in this country there is a VAT refund system, which is levied on various goods. Tax Free in Rome is returned from the amount of purchases made by non-residents of Italy.

Features of obtaining Tax free

The system under consideration involves a return of 4 to 22% of the total purchase amount, the specified amount varies depending on the commission of the selected Tax Free operator and the amount of VAT. Legal entities can also use this service, while the amount of the refund will be charged from the funds spent on business trips abroad.

To return Tax free to Rimen you need:

• make purchases in one store for an amount exceeding 154.94 euros, while they must be paid with one check;
• when choosing a store, make sure that its windows have logos of companies such as Global Blue, Premier and Refund. Then you can definitely count on Tax Free;
• after making a purchase, issue a special form, upon presentation of which, at Fiumicino Airport or a special office, a certain refund amount will be issued.

In order to have time to issue a refund, it is necessary to provide a margin of time before departure, you will need to leave the hotel an hour earlier.

Ways to get Tax Free

There are two options for refunding VAT on purchases: directly on the day of departure and in advance.

Through companies

The above companies are all located in the center of Rome, in order to process a return to their office, you need to bring:

• unpacked purchases with price tags;
• checks for goods;
• international passport;
• return ticket.

After checking all the accompanying documents, buyers are given money. When you need to leave, at the airport you should stamp the checks issued by the company at the customs office and provide your purchases.

global blue

The office is located in Piazza di Spagna. Reception hours from 10.00 to 19.30, Sunday is a day off. The largest refund amount is 2999.50 euros in cash and 14999 in the form of a transfer to a credit card.

Despite the fact that we were talking about a 22% refund, in most cases the VAT refund after purchases will be much less, almost half, since a certain amount goes to remuneration to the intermediary. The exact amount of the refund will depend on the value of the purchases, if they are expensive, then the percentage will be lower.

Premier Tax Free

A return point is available at City Refund, you need to have credit cards such as Amex, MasterCard and Visa with you. Electronic and debit cards are not accepted, cash can be issued, but a commission is charged from them. Then you will need to get a customs mark, which acts as a confirmation of the export of the purchased goods, the received form must be returned to the Premier Tax Free office within 21 days.

If this is not done, the full amount of the refund, as well as additional costs for the return of funds, will be charged to the credit card.

Registration at the airport

Having decided to issue Tax Free just before departure, you need to take into account that a large queue constantly accumulates in front of the points of issue. To get a VAT refund at Rome airport, you need to go through several stages:

1. Pre-obtain a special invoice from the store where the purchases were made, when filling out which you will need to indicate your address, the amount of the refund and passport data. You can fill out such a form yourself or entrust this matter to the seller, as long as it contains the buyer's signature.
2. After the boarding pass is issued by the cashier, you should ask him where the customs office is located to receive Tax Free.
3. The customs officer stamps all checks presented, and if he requests, all purchases with tags must be presented, which in no case can be torn off or cut off. If a tourist travels further in the EU countries, then the stamp on the invoices is placed in the one from which he will return home.
4. The issued papers must be taken to the selected company and receive Tax free in the form of cash or by transfer to the card, in the second case they can take from 3 to 5 days. Until receipt of transfers, all completed documents must be kept, if suddenly the return is not transferred during this time, then it will be possible to obtain information about the reasons by calling the phone number indicated on these papers. In the event of the closure of the Cash refund point or its absence at the airport, it will be possible to send the completed forms to his address, without forgetting to enter your credit card number in them.

The detailed options for obtaining Tax Free make it possible to make a choice in favor of a more optimal method. The final amount will be slightly less than the VAT charged on the item, as it will be subject to a processing fee and possibly a cash refund fee.

Many travelers know that by shopping, you can save some money and get back some of the money spent on shopping abroad. The Tax Free refund provides for a refund of VAT on goods exported outside the country where they were purchased. However, the procedure for registration and receipt of money directly upon leaving the country is associated with the expenditure of time, nerves and vitality. You can return the tax on purchases even before your departure and reuse the funds received by contacting the office of one of the three intermediary companies - Global Blue, Tax Refund S.p.a or Premier Tax Free, located in the very center of Rome.

Tax Refund S.p.a return points in Rome

Best and Fast

Via Nazionale,19
Working days: daily, from 07.45 to 21.00

Korea Lottecard

Piazza di Spagna,80. Working days: daily, from 09.30 to 20.00
Piazza di Spagna,38. Working days: Monday-Friday from 09.00 to 17.30, Saturday - until 12.30.
Via Lazio,10. Working days: Monday-Friday from 09.30 to 19.00, Saturday - until 13.00.

What else you need to know when returning Tax Free

1. The basic standard rate of Imposta sul Valore Aggiunto (IVA), i.e. value added tax, in Italy is 22%. But for some product groups, it may differ:

• textiles, leather clothing, jewelry, sunglasses, glassware, wines and other alcohol - 22%;
• meat products, cheeses and other food products - 10%;
• various herbs such as basil, oregano or sage - 5%;
• dairy products, bread, vegetables and fruits, prescription glasses - 4%.

2. Goods purchased in the countries of the European Union must be exported outside of it no later than 3 months from the date of purchase, recorded in the sales receipt of the store where it was purchased.

3. A special form, fattura (Tax Free Shopping Cheque), received along with the store receipt, must indicate the price of the goods, as well as the amount to be reimbursed. In addition, passport data must be entered in the appropriate fields - document number, full name. and home address of the bearer.

4. When passing customs control, you will need to present the purchased goods (in original packaging, not used), a check from the store and a completed invoice form. On it, the customs officer must put the appropriate stamp, thereby certifying that all the formalities have been met and the goods have been properly registered for export.

5. It is important to take into account that the customs stamp for purchased goods must be affixed only before leaving the EU countries. In other words, if the journey continues in the EU zone or you are supposed to transfer there, the customs clearance mark is affixed in the last country.

6. After passing through customs, it is recommended to immediately send a store receipt and an invoice with a stamp by mail, placing the documents in a branded postal envelope issued in the store when registering Tax Free. Mailboxes can be found without difficulty by contacting the airport terminal workers. Documents can also be sent from a permanent place of residence, but in this case you will have to pay extra as for international postage. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that the tax form must be delivered to the office of the company within 21 days, counting from the date of affixing the customs seal.

We hope that the above recommendations will greatly facilitate the return of Tax Free and make shopping in Rome much more profitable and enjoyable. At least this way you can avoid long queues for refunds at airports and save time. And how to get Tax Free directly at airports upon departure, we will tell in our next article.

Tax-Free is a system now known throughout the world for the return of a certain percentage of a purchase made abroad. This percentage is VAT, and in Italy it is 22%. But, before you rejoice, you should learn about some of the nuances and conditions of this refund, which, by the way, can be very strict.

The first thing to remember when counting on Tax-Free in Italy is that not all stores work with this system. Everything is explained by an elementary benefit - not every store owner agrees to give part of the profit back to the buyer, even if this will attract much more tourists to his store. Information about Tax-free is most often available right at the entrance to the store, or at the checkout.

The second important point will be the minimum purchase amount for a Tax-Free refund. In Italy this amount is 154 euros on the each score. Even if the purchase amount is less than a few euro cents, a refund automatically becomes impossible.

Also, with each purchase, you must have with you the passport for filling special formtax-free. It is issued immediately in the store, but you can fill it out at a convenient time for you. One has only to remember that the validity of the form with a check is 3 months, after which the amount of your Tax-free burns out.

IMPORTANT: An incorrectly completed or incompletely completed form is considered invalid!

Return Tax-Free

You can return the very 22% of the purchase made in Italy in several ways, which not all Russian tourists know about. It is far from always necessary to defend a long queue at the airport, there are more efficient ways.

In the shop

Tourists who value their own time can apply for a VAT refund directly in the store, for this you just need to make sure that the department of your choice offers such a service. It is enough to look at the signs at the checkout of the store and see one of the logos of the so-called Tax-free companies on it.

IMPORTANT: In total, there are 3 companies in Italy that are responsible for issuing Tax-free and refunding money. These are: "Global Blue" (head office in Sweden), "Premier Tax Free" (Irish company) and "Tax Refund" (Italian company). As a rule, tourists turn mainly to Global Blue, which is not always correct - they have the longest queues.

But, even if you issued Tax-free immediately upon purchase, you only saved your own and other people's time at the airport, in order to get your money back, you will have to stand in line and go through the standard customs clearance procedure.

Return Tax-free completely and immediately in the shop It is possible only for a certain category of goods - exclusive clothes, vintage perfumes, jewelry and fur coats. In this case, you will receive a special form in your hands, which will indicate that the goods are “exempt” from VAT.

In the town

You can also return money after filling out the form in the store at special offices of intermediaries - companies under whose logo the forms were issued to you. AT last years the number of such offices is increasing, and now they represent a well-established network in Italy.

To date, the offices of Tax-free companies are located in the following Italian cities:

• Florence
• Milan
• Venice
• Bologna
• Rimini
• Catania

Going to one of these offices, you must have your passport, receipts for absolutely all purchases along with completed Tax-free forms, as well as a copy return ticket(or better, the original). You will need a ticket so that the company has information about the date of your departure, which they will transfer already at the airport.

After that, you will only have to stand in line (sometimes quite long), and submit documents to the window for consideration of the application. The whole procedure will take no more than half an hour if the queue does not start from the street.

IMPORTANT: All Tax-free companies dispersed throughout the cities take a commission for their services, which can be up to 50% of the refund amount. That is, the final value of Tax-free will not be 22%, but only 11%, it’s definitely not worth being surprised and making scandals in offices. The exact amount of the commission will depend on the total amount of the purchase.

Global Blue office at the airport

In the airport

The classic Tax-free refund algorithm directly on the day of departure back home will begin immediately after the registration procedure. After receiving your boarding pass, you will need to queue up at customs.

If the customs officer is satisfied with the presentation of the things declared on the forms, and the documents themselves do not have violations, it remains to queue up at the counter of the Tax-free company that issued you the form.

After standing in line and submitting a stamped form to the operator, you will hear an offer to return the money in cash or by bank transfer to the card. If you choose the second option, the money will be transferred to you within 14 working days.

IMPORTANT: The stage with the queue to the Tax-free counter at the airport is the longest. Only one wait can take 3 hours or more, depending on the number of people in the queue and the workload of the airport itself. In order not to miss your flight, it is best to arrive at the airport a few hours early.

Upon arrival in Russia

If there is no desire to stand in line at the airport or in the city offices of Tax-free refund companies, you can arrange everything upon arrival in Russia. The main condition is that all checks and forms in any case must have Italian customs stamp.

After arrival, within 3 months from the date of purchase, you can contact one of the banks that works with European Tax-free companies. It will be enough to bring the forms with checks to the bank branch and wait for a response to the request. This is done for a long time - answers from the Tax-free company come within 2 hours.

IMPORTANT: It is worth remembering that it is not always possible to return the money in cash - some Russian banks do not specifically provide such a service in order to charge a larger percentage of the commission for a wire transfer from the client.

Queue to the Tax-free counter at the airport

• When passing through customs for the return flight, you must make sure that all receipts for Tax-free are saved, and purchased goods are packed, and they show no obvious signs of use. If any of these conditions is not met, the refund is considered illegal.
• All goods for which a Tax-free refund is made must be carried in hand luggage. The exception is bulky items and goods that are prohibited from being carried on board the aircraft. If your goods fall under this exception, you need to prepare for a full baggage screening, which can take several hours.
• Highly Recommended make copies all checks and completed Tax-free forms immediately upon receipt. It will not take much time and money, but then it can save you from unpleasant situations.
• For underage tourists, some Italian shops may refuse in the design of tax-free - this is done for reasons of elementary security. To avoid such situations, it is only necessary to have one of the parents or an official escort with you, who is already 18 years old.
• When buying any equipment Apple(including iPhones) in Italy Tax-free returns only on return flight and only on non-cash basis. This is the policy of the company, which applies to all countries where there are points of sale of popular equipment.
• In the European Union, books, magazines and other printed products VAT is not a subject to a tax, so you should not even try to find out how you can get back Tax-free when buying in bookstores.
• Few people know about it, but in Italy Tax-free can be returned even from purchases of exported food. From milk and fruits, the return is 4%, from other products - 10%.

Thirty kilometers southeast of Rome is the small town of Fiumicino. It is unlikely that its name would be widely known to tourists if it were not for the main airport in Italy, bearing the name of the great genius Leonardo da Vinci, next to it.

It was built in 1961 in order to relieve the very compact Ciampino Airport. Having undergone numerous changes, it has become a convenient and safe air harbor through which approximately forty million passengers pass annually. Its services are used by all VIPs visiting the country, influential politicians and businessmen.

The territory of the airport is divided into several terminals:

T1 serves passengers who have Schengen visas. T2 is intended for charter flights. T3 accepts international flights whose passengers pass through passport control, as well as aircraft of the Italian company Alitalia. T5 serves flights to the USA and Israel. The airport has a cargo terminal, four runways, a waiting room, escalators, a baggage claim belt, a huge hall, and other specialized premises, the scheme of which can always be seen on the electronic scoreboard.

The terminals offer free Wi-Fi access and non-smoking rooms. In the terminal building itself, you can have a bite to eat in a cafe, exchange currency, buy souvenirs or necessary medicines.

There are multiple ATMs at the airport where you can withdraw euros from your card. Other currency can be obtained at exchange offices operating from 6.00 to 23.00. >There is a left-luggage office on the territory of the third terminal, open from 6.30 to 23.30. The cost of this service per day is six euros.

It will be interesting and useful for parents to know that there is a mother and child room at Fiumicino Airport, where you can leave your child for certain time. There, experienced nannies will look after him while moms and dads are busy shopping, paperwork, or other things. Also, if necessary, qualified medical assistance can be provided to passengers.

Moving around the airport

You can travel between the airport terminals by shuttle buses, which are free of charge. The interval between flights is 20 minutes. One of them serves terminals T1, T2 and T3, and the other circulates between T3 and T5. You should know that from 01.00 to 04.00 these buses arrive only on the call of passengers. To do this, there are intercom buttons installed at bus stops. Additionally, terminal T3 can be reached by a small automatic train.

Registration procedure

All tourists are warned in advance that it is best to arrive for the registration procedure and preliminary ticket control 2.5 - 3 hours before departure. This is due to the duration of this procedure, especially when it comes to departure to the United States and Israel. But for customers who use the services of the airport's VIP lounge, they have the opportunity to go through passport and customs control, receive registration documents and checks for luggage without a queue and a long wait. They include a menu from the airport bar, free and unlimited Wi-Fi, and fresh newspapers and magazines.

Return Tax-free

For tourists arriving from countries outside the EU, there is a Tax-free service, which implies a refund of 20% of the cost of purchased goods, the price of which exceeds 155 euros. There are several intermediary firms dealing with VAT refunds. One of them is Global Blue.

If the seller of goods has an agreement with her, then the money will be returned to the client even before boarding the plane. The rest of the companies transfer money to the customer's card after their departure from Italy. The only condition is the presence of a Tax Refund check, which must be stamped by customs.

Nearest hotels

Unfortunately, sometimes weather conditions or other unforeseen circumstances force passengers to wait all night for a flight. In order not to spend this time at the airport, you can use the services of hotels located near the exits of the terminals. There are only three such institutions, and they include:

Hilton Roma Airport

This is a rather expensive 4-star hotel, where customers are provided with high level service, varied cuisine and many additional services included in the price of accommodation, which is about 200 euros per night.

Hilton Garden Inn Rome Airport

The hotel also belongs to the 4-star class and has approximately the same range of services as the option described above. The cost of a room per night is approximately 130 euros.

Welcome Airport Hotel

It belongs to the “2-star” budget establishments, where you can spend the night inexpensively, but quite comfortably, waiting for departure.

To save money, you can go to Fiumicino, where you can find a hotel, accommodation in which will be from 30 to 70 euros per night.

How to get from the airport to the center

Traveling from Leonardo da Vinci Airport to Rome is quick and easy, as there are numerous modes of transport available to passengers.

Bus routes

Perhaps the most easily accessible means of transportation is the Cotral bus. But there are two significant drawbacks, which include the inconvenience of carrying bulky luggage and the lack of night flights.

Railway transport

The most economical way to travel is by rail. The disadvantages of this option include the low speed of this type of transport and problems with the transportation of bulky luggage.

Taxi

It is a convenient but expensive mode of transport. Its cost, according to the municipal tariff, is 40 euros. This includes baggage allowance. The number of passengers should not exceed four people.

When using the services of local taxi drivers, you need to be prepared for the fact that he can name a higher price, counting on the inexperience of the tourist. But a correct indication of the real price puts everything in its place, although it slightly lowers the driver's mood.

Transfer

This is the most convenient way to travel from the airport to Rome, with virtually no drawbacks. First of all, passengers traveling with children pay attention to it. Having discussed this detail in advance, the client receives a car with seats equipped for kids, and a spacious luggage compartment that can fit a large hand luggage, stroller and so on. You can also order a car equipped with an additional air conditioning system. And for tourists from Russia, a Russian-speaking driver is provided who can tell a lot of interesting things about Italy, its traditions and local attractions.