HOW DOES TAX-FREE SHOPPING WORK?
At Celinni, it's possible to obtain a tax refund on your diamond jewelry if you are a foreign resident. The French VAT rate is 20%.
Important information regarding the tax refund procedure:
If you do not have a residence or habitual abode in France or another European Union member state, you can purchase Steinberg International products VAT-free, or receive a refund of this tax, for any merchandise intended for export.
In case of sale, Steinberg International will issue an export sales voucher. This must be presented with the merchandise at the customs office of the point of exit from the European Union. The customs office's endorsement at the EU exit point grants the seller the final benefit of VAT exemption. It is the seller's responsibility to process the tax refund based on the customs endorsement.
Before utilizing this procedure, we draw your attention to the prerequisites for VAT exemption and the necessary steps to follow.
UNDER WHAT CONDITIONS CAN TAX REFUND WORK?
If you are a foreign resident, there are two possibilities:
- Delivery of the product to one of our metropolitan points of sale
- You decide to purchase a jewel and offer it abroad
- You place an order at one of our showrooms (Paris, Bordeaux, Lille, Nice or Lyon)
- We invoice you the price excluding taxes without any deduction
- We ask for your passport and a VAT deposit check
- You validate the tax refund form at the airport
- We refund your deposit check
- Shipping abroad
- You order a product and wish for it to be available in a non-European Union country
- We invoice you the price excluding taxes without any deduction
- You will need to add a package of €198 including export freight forwarding fees
- Delivery is free via FEDEX
Caution: You will be subject to local taxes in the destination country. Please check with the customs office of the receiving country.
WHO CAN BENEFIT FROM THIS PROCEDURE?
To be eligible for this procedure, you must:
- Be a resident of a non-European Union third country at the time of purchase;
- Be visiting France for less than six months;
- Be aged 16 years or older.
You must be able to substantiate these qualifications at the time of purchase, particularly by presenting a valid passport or original identification if you are a resident of a third-country within the Schengen area (Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, or Liechtenstein).
WHICH PURCHASES ARE ELIGIBLE FOR THE TAX REFUND PROCEDURE?
The total amount of purchases made on the same day in the same store or on the same website must exceed €175 including VAT.
The purchase you make must correspond to a retail sale intended for tourist use, strictly for personal use and not for commercial purposes.
HOW TO OBTAIN THE TAX REFUND?
At the time of purchase, the seller will provide you with an export sales voucher which must be signed by both the seller and yourself. By doing so, you agree to fulfill certain formalities.
You must personally transport the goods outside the EU, in your luggage and using the means of transport you are using, that are eligible for tax refund.
Upon your final departure from the European Union, you must present both the merchandise and the voucher for customs endorsement simultaneously and before checking in your luggage.
This procedure must be completed before the end of the third month following the month in which your purchase was made.
WHAT SHOULD YOU PAY ATTENTION TO?
Attention: If any of the above conditions are not met, the service will refuse to endorse the voucher(s).
If you are leaving the European Union through France:
For manual endorsement: French customs will stamp both parts of your voucher: you must then send the endorsed document back to the seller.
For electronic endorsement at the PABLO terminal: the process is automated, and you must complete the electronic endorsement of the export sales voucher(s) at one of the optical reading terminals near a customs tax refund counter. If the exit point from French territory does not have a PABLO electronic terminal, the vouchers must be presented to the customs service, which will electronically endorse them using a barcode reader or manually enter the PABLO application identification number.
Attention: During customs checks for endorsement of the vouchers (manual or electronic), you must present the goods. Failure to present the goods will result in cancellation of the voucher and potentially a fine.
For more information, please visit the Customs website or refer to the Customs brochure on Tax Refund Procedure in France and the main reasons for tax refund refusal.
