New tax refund booth for tourists at Phu Quoc airport
A value-added tax refund booth for foreigners and overseas Vietnamese will be opened at the sole airport in the southern resort island of Phu Quoc to attract more tourists, the government website said on March 2.
This will be the eighth booth of its kind in Vietnam, following those at major airports in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, and Cam Ranh near Nha Trang.
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Foreign tourists also have access to similar services at international three seaports- Khanh Hoi in HCM City, Danang and Nha Trang.
Under Vietnamese laws, goods eligible for the tax refunds must be brand new and worth at least VND2 million (US$95).
Foreigners are given 60 days from the date of purchase to claim the tax.
Expected to become a tourism hot spot, Phu Quoc is currently connected with Cambodia and Singapore through weekly flights operated by Vietnam Airlines, besides flights from and to Russia.
Official statistics showed that the famed resort island, which is some 62 sea miles off Kien Giang Province’s capital Rach Gia Town, attracted over 1 million tourists last year. About 10% of them were foreigners.
Vietnam started offering VAT refunds to foreign tourists in July 2012.