Ever notice that when you buy goods in Europe you don’t have to pay sales tax? That’s because it’s already included… and if you’re only visiting you can get all of that tax money back. It can be around 15%… and if you love fashion like me, you’re probably itching to fly to Italy tomorrow and visit the Ferragamo outlet in Florence (seriously… it’s amazing.)

Here’s the deal:

1. Stores require a minimum. You can look up what the country minimum is for you.
2. When you check out, be sure to ask for tax free forms. They will print an extra long receipt and give you a special envelope. This envelope is key because there are 2 different companies at the airport that give you money back. Sometimes you only have to one, sometimes both.
3. I’ve done tax free in Madrid, Frankfurt, and Reykjavik airports. Madrid’s T4 customs stamping area is to the left of security before you go through. Policies differ for all of them, but usually you have to take your receipts to a customs agent, along with your passport, to get receipts stamped. This stamp is not only necessary to have, but has to be in the correct spot. One time I got turned away simply because my stamp was a few inches off, and had to revisit a customs office. So stressful. Another obstacle is that sometimes the customs people require you to show the goods you bought in order to get the stamp. This happened to me in Frankfurt. So I would pack what you bought in your carry on luggage just in case.
4. Sometimes there is a line! In Reykjavik there wasn’t, but in Madrid I waited for about 30 minutes. Allow extra time for the process. And if you have both the orange and the blue company to visit, know that you have to wait in 2 separate lines. Annoying.
5. You can get cash back, but there is a commission. I’m always one to take the cash because I’m not totally sure I trust money going back into my account in a month’s time. But to each his/her own.

Example: let’s say you want a nice coat and it costs €300. You buy it in a country that includes a 15% VAT. You can expect around €45 back before commission if you get it in cash. If you bought two and have receipts stamped for both, you would get around €90 back. 

That’s it! Yay free (but not really) money. I’ll update this page in case I gather any additional findings from different airports.