What it actually cost, once it crossed the border
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There is no UK VAT refund for tourists in Great Britain, and has not been since 1 January 2021. Two schemes ended, not one — Northern Ireland still runs one.
No refund in Great Britain · Country Procedure
The Japan tax free changes keep the ¥10,000 and move it: you pay the tax, customs confirms at departure, and the law sets no refund method and no fee ceiling.
¥10,000, after the queue · Country Procedure
A VAT refund in Switzerland is 7.5% of the price, starts at CHF 300, and runs 90 days — and leaving by land into the EU costs more than it pays back.
CHF 33.72 on CHF 600 spent · Country Procedure
Duty free vs tax free: one takes the tax off at the till, the other returns part of it weeks later minus a fee. Two mechanisms, two sums, one customs hall.
Two mechanisms, not two words · The Arithmetic
A VAT refund calculator stops at the refund. On €1,000 spent in France that is €125 on screen and about €110 landed, once conversion and US duty arrive.
€125.00 on screen, about €110 landed · The Arithmetic
How much do you get back from a VAT refund? About 12% of what you paid, not 20% — and less again once duty and conversion are counted. The whole sum, worked.
About 12%, not 20% · The Arithmetic