If the credit report is not good

Payment of bounced cheques is a condition for registering retail stores with a tax refund system for tourists

Bounced checks hinder registration until proof of clearance or payment is bringed. Archival

According to the Federal Tax Authority, the registration of retail stores in the tax refund system for tourists requires a good credit report, in accordance with the controls set by the service provider Planet.

In a clarification, the authority indicated that in the event that the credit report is not good, Planet will ask the shop wishing to register with the tax refund system for tourists, to provide proof of clearance or payment of bounced checks to proceed with registration.

She added that before approving registration, the retailer who wants to join the system must sign a credit verification approval form that authorizes Planet to request a credit report.

The VAT refund system for tourists was launched from 18 November 2018, allowing eligible tourists to claim a VAT refund on their local purchases.

According to the system, there are four basic conditions for the retailer's participation in the system, the first of which is that he must be registered with the Federal Tax Authority and have a tax registration number, in addition to that his sales are not excluded from refund, with the merchant submitting an application to participate in the system as determined by the authority, and the merchant must meet the credit requirements specified by the system operator, as well as be committed to submitting returns and paying the tax due on him regularly.

According to the service provider "Planet", there are benefits that the store reaps if it joins the tax refund system for tourists, including ease of management, increasing the demand of international shoppers to the store, removing forged papers and seals, and finally saving information and the possibility of retrieving it for auditing purposes safely.

This system allows tourists to recover VAT paid on VAT-subject purchases from within the country and exported abroad with a minimum of AED 250.

The tax is refunded after ensuring that the tourist and the goods leave the country.

VAT refunds can be claimed within 12 months from the date of validation of refund requests.