Kievgid

Tax is something we all have to pay on more or less every purchase we ever make. It is what fuels our economy and gives our government money so that they can run the country.

A percentage of every wage packet we will ever receive goes to the government as tax, as does a slice of what we pay on every shop purchase we make, and it is this money that allows our economic system to work and our government to manage it.

However, despite the fact that tax and its benefits are more or less what separates our country from the less economically developed countries and it allows the country to be run in a way that benefits everyone, but even so, at the end of the day, it is our hard earned money that’s being taken away from us, so aren’t we at least entitled to a little groan about it once in a while?

However, if you reside and are an official citizen of a country outside the EU and you are visiting the UK (or few other EU countries) then there are select stores from which you can claim back any tax you’ve paid on your purchases!

Here are the five steps you should take to ensure that you can claim back your tax:

1. Look out for the sticker in store windows indicating that they are part of the tax free shopping scheme.

2. Ask what the minimum spending amount is to qualify for the tax refund as this can change from shop to shop.

3. Once you’ve bought your items (ensuring that collectively they are worth over the minimum amount to qualify) and then request and fill in the tax refund cheque form.

4. When you show customs your passport on your way out of the country, show them your completed tax refund cheque form.

5. Visit the tax refund office in the airport to claim your tax back, or you can send of the form via post and receive the full amount back either in the form of a cheque or you can have it credited to your credit card.