GST refund scheme for retailers

What is the GST visitor refund scheme?

The scheme allows visitors to Jersey to claim a GST refund. 

In order to qualify, the goods must be:

• paid on qualifying goods
• over £300 in value 
• bought from a participating Jersey retailer

The scheme is not mandatory for visitors or retailers.

Joining the scheme

Why should I join the scheme?

Joining will allow you to refund the GST paid on sales you make over £300 to people who visit Jersey, if they qualify.

Which visitors to Jersey are eligible for the GST refund?

• not have spent more than 365 days in Jersey in the 24 months immediately before the date of purchase
• not be a resident of Jersey
• not have been employed in Jersey at any time in the past six months immediately before the date of purchase
• be over the age of 16 at the time of purchase
• not be a member of the flight or cabin crew of the aircraft on which they are leaving Jersey

How do I sign up to the scheme?

You must apply to the GST department at the Taxes Office to become a member of the scheme.

Your approval will be subject to certain criteria, such as:

• your compliance record for submitting your GST returns
• whether your GST payments are up to date
• your type of business
• your ability to comply with the requirements of the scheme

Once we've granted approval, you will need to enter into an agreement with the verification service provider, G4S. G4S will contact you to sign the agreement with them.

What types of goods are included in the scheme?

You may only include retail sales of goods to non-business customers.

What types of goods aren't included in the scheme?

You cannot give GST refunds for:

• goods that have been or are to be consumed or part-consumed in Jersey, such as alcohol, confectionery, and perfume
• services including as accommodation, vehicle rental, catering, and tour services
• means of transportation, including fuel and goods prohibited from carriage on aircraft

How it works

When a visitor buys good/s from you, you must:

• verify that your customer is eligible for the scheme by checking their passport or other identification
• check their departure date and confirm that the departure point is Jersey Airport on a scheduled flight
• complete the application form in the presence of the customer
• if you are applying any charges for this service, you must inform the customer
• explain to the customer that they will have to produce the goods, invoice or receipt, and application form to the verification providers at Jersey Airport for review. Small items should be carried in hand luggage

How is the transaction recorded for GST?

The sale will be recorded in the normal way, inclusive of GST. It is only when you receive the completed, verified form from your customer that you must make adjustments to your sales records.

Sales and returns made in the same quarter

If the completed documents are received from your customer during the same GST quarter that you recorded the sale, and you have repaid the GST amount to them, you should include the value of the sale within boxes 1 and 2 of your GST return. This will reduce the amount on which you have to pay GST.

Sales and returns made in different quarters

If the completed documents are received from your customer during a different GST quarter that you recorded the sale, and you have repaid the customer the amount of GST, you will probably already have accounted for the GST and should include the value of the sale in box 2 only.

Calculating the GST refund

1. sale of goods to the value of £530 inclusive of GST
2. GST value is £530 x 5/105 = £25.24 (this is the amount of GST which has been relieved)
3. net value of sale is therefore £530 – £25.24 = £504.76 (this is the figure you would include in box 1 and box 2 of your GST return). Depending on when the completed form is received, this may be in different return periods

If you intend to deduct an amount from the refund to cover administrative costs, this must be explained to the visitor at the point of sale to avoid confusion or complaints. The GST charge on this administration cost would be zero-rated.

How do I make refunds to visitors?

You are responsible for making refunds to visitors.

You must provide the visitor with your address details, or an addressed envelope, to enable them to return the refund form to you.

You may wish to make the visitor aware in advance of the means (eg cheque, bank credit etc) and the currency in which you will refund them.

Keeping refund forms secure

The blank visitor refund forms provided to you should be kept secure. You can get them from the Taxes Office.

In the event of misuse or invalid claims being made, you will be liable for any GST due and may also be removed from the scheme.

Download a guide to the GST visitor refund scheme (size 39kb)​