I am a South Korean citizen traveling in France for a few days. I want to go to a store that participates in the tax-free scheme (namely Louis Vuitton Paris) so that I can apply for tax refund in France. To avoid fees and the ridiculous conversion rate resulting from using my credit card abroad, a French friend will pay for the item instead of me. May I still applying for tax refund if the item is bought by somebody else than me?

  • Have the French guy withdraw some money from the ATM and give you cash. Since he's using a French card there should be no fees for doing this. – JonathanReez Oct 6 '14 at 8:04
  • Thanks, the issue is that the amount that will be spend is pretty high (around €10k), ATM withdrawals are restricted (typically a few hundreds EUR) and when going to bank you need to call them a few days ahead to make sure they have enough cash for you when you come. – Franck Dernoncourt Oct 6 '14 at 8:07

If the item purchased is exported then it qualifies for VAT refunds under most schemes. However the person whose name is on the paperwork is the one who has to apply for the VAT refund when leaving the country. So the question will be, if the store is willing to allow a French citizen to pay and put the foreigners name on the paperwork.

  • Thanks, any idea if most stores would be willing to do so? – Franck Dernoncourt Oct 6 '14 at 6:20
  • 1
    Call the store in question (I assume not a lot of stores sell 10k$ items) and ask – JonathanReez Oct 6 '14 at 10:14

Your Answer

