I can't find any news articles about this change even though the ABF website has been updated to reflect the new rules, so thought it would be worth posting here.
For many of us that used to claim Tourist Refund Scheme (TRS) when departing Australia, back then we could bring the goods back into Australia as long as it did not exceed the A$900 duty free concession (which could be pooled together for a family).
However, when departing on a flight for Singapore last weekend, at TRS I was perplexed when told that TRS goods cannot be brought back to Australia at all now without repaying the GST. (Though I'm not an Australian resident so that wasn't an issue for me)
The TRS receipt now states that "If TRS goods return to Australia they must be declared and the full refund paid back. TRS goods are not included in your passenger concession"
So as international travel returns and you're buying goods with the intention of claiming GST refund and bringing it back into Australia, this is something you'll want to be aware of.
Interestingly the ATO website has not been updated to reflect this....
alansu
alansu
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
Member since 22 Jan 2015
Total posts 88
I can't find any news articles about this change even though the ABF website has been updated to reflect the new rules, so thought it would be worth posting here.
For many of us that used to claim Tourist Refund Scheme (TRS) when departing Australia, back then we could bring the goods back into Australia as long as it did not exceed the A$900 duty free concession (which could be pooled together for a family).
However, when departing on a flight for Singapore last weekend, at TRS I was perplexed when told that TRS goods cannot be brought back to Australia at all now without repaying the GST. (Though I'm not an Australian resident so that wasn't an issue for me)
The TRS receipt now states that "If TRS goods return to Australia they must be declared and the full refund paid back. TRS goods are not included in your passenger concession"
So as international travel returns and you're buying goods with the intention of claiming GST refund and bringing it back into Australia, this is something you'll want to be aware of.
Interestingly the ATO website has not been updated to reflect this....
wanderingvan
wanderingvan
Member since 01 Feb 2018
Total posts 24
Thanks for the alert Alansu.
It seen the ATO keen see Australian Travellers spend money oversea rather than in Oz.
It is now updated on https://www.abf.gov.au/entering-and-leaving-australia/tourist-refund-scheme.