Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the departures hall at Dublin Airport. If you're running late at
the airport, you can have the checks stamped by Customs and
mail them to Global Refund in an international prepaid enve-
lope. Finally, if you forget to get your checks stamped at Cus-
toms, all is not lost. Just get them stamped by a notary public,
justice of the peace, or a police officer (with a badge number) in
your home country, and mail them back.
What if the shop isn't part of the Global Refund network? For a
store refund,
get a full receipt at the time of purchase that shows
the shop's name, address, and VAT paid. (Customs does not accept
generic cash-register tally slips.) Save your receipts until you're ready
to depart Ireland, then go to the Customs Office at the airport or
ferry port to have your receipts stamped and your goods inspected.
A passport and other forms of identification (a driver's license, for
example) may be required. Then send your stamped receipts back to
the store where you made the purchase, which will then issue a VAT
refund check to you by mail to your home address. Most stores
deduct a small handling fee for this service.
AVOIDING THE VAT HASSLE
Don't want to fill out those forms? Hate the thought of lining up at
the airport refund desk? There are three ways to pay no VAT from
the beginning.
•
Mail your purchases home.
Arrange for the store to ship your
purchases home, and the VAT will be subtracted at the point
of sale. You save having to fill out those forms, and you don't
have to lug around your stuff. But you still have to pay ship-
ping costs, which may outweigh any hassle you save.
•
Buy at the airport.
When returning home from Ireland, non-
E.U. citizens are entitled to shop in the duty-free shops at
Dublin Airport. If you're flying on Aer Lingus, you can also
shop onboard at the airline's “Duty-Free Sky Shop.” These
shops offer prices that are free of duty or tax. There are no
forms to fill out and no lines to reclaim money. The main
drawback is the very limited variety of goods compared to the
shops around Ireland.
•
Support a good cause.
Ireland's nonprofit organizations that
sell goods operate as charitable trusts and are not subject to
VAT, so all their prices are VAT-free. Check out
Oxfam
shops (www.oxfamireland.org) for pottery and other trendy
housewares.
