Playing the VAT game

By K. Jill Rigby, Toronto Sun
Copyright 2001 Sun Media Corporation
Article date: August 5, 2001
 

When it comes to travelling with the limping loonie, Canadians have to use every resource at hand to try and find a discount.

Some of us have even resorted to bargaining with hotels about their rates as though we were haggling in a Guatemalan market.

A good long chat with an airline reservations agent is not beyond imagination, either.

"If you were me, would you pay this kind of fare?" It doesn't work all the time, but every once in a while someone takes pity and searches a little harder for that elusive affordable fare.

Shopping in Europe puts bargain-hunting skills to the real test. It takes a lot of effort to not only unearth the best price, but also to figure out whether or not you are entitled to the value-added tax (VAT) refund. In Europe, this tax, sometimes as much as 20%, is hidden in the price tag. The next trick is learning how to redeem the refund.

If playing the VAT game, remember that you cannot pool all your purchases from different stores and thus qualify for a refund. Usually you need to purchase above a certain amount in one spot to obtain the VAT.

Then come the forms.

Be sure to read the fine print and take your passport with you since everything is filled out in the store. They, too, need a copy for their records.

Next step: The airport.

Do not pack the items for which you are getting a refund. If you have too many items to put in a carry-on bag, then request to see the VAT officer before checking in.

The British Airways personnel at Heathrow are particularly helpful in this regard. On several occasions they have checked me in and put a baggage tag on my luggage, saying that I can come back to the front of the line after I have had everything stamped.

If you are visiting several countries in Europe, then you need only visit the VAT desk in the airport from which your return flight departs.

After all this, you can start praying that the refund actually arrives. If you don't want to be fussing with foreign currencies, ask the store to put the credit on your Visa. Once the shopkeeper receives the authorization, they will tear up your Visa slip and the credit will appear on a future bill.

If all this seems like a hassle -- it is. For good reason, North American travellers failed to collect more than $50 million in VAT refunds last year.

To make the refund process easier, you might consider making all your purchases in one place. Galleries Lafayette in Paris, for example, will automatically provide a refund if your purchases exceed a certain amount. The same is true of Harrods in London.

The other option is making use of the services provided by Global Refund, who will take the hiccups out of the procedure for a small fee. The company has 700 locations and deals with more than 170,000 retailers in 28 countries. Their commission operates on a sliding scale -- the more you purchase, the less they charge to process the refund. It certainly beats standing in a long queue at the VAT airport desk.
 

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