The Tourist Refund Scheme (TRS) is administered by Singapore Customs on behalf of the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). The scheme is for tourists who wish to claim a refund of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) paid on their purchases.

Effective from 19 August 2012, retailers who want to operate TRS must operate it electronically (i.e. eTRS) and all such transactions are to be issued in electronic form (instead of paper) from 4 April 2019 onwards.

TRS is available to tourists departing from :
i) Changi International Airport;
ii) Seletar Airport

TRS is not available to tourists departing Singapore from land exits or via seaports.

To be an eligible tourist, you must:
– spend at least SGD100(including GST). You may accumulate up to 3 same-day invoices/receipts from retailers bearing the same GST registration number and shop name to meet this minimum purchase amount;
– present the original passport in person (for cashier to ensure that the passport belongs to you);
– be 16 years of age or above on the date of the purchase;
-depart Singapore with the goods via Changi Airport or Seletar Airport with 2 months from the date of purchase;and
– be able to present the goods purchased – along with corresponding purchase receipts and passport, to be inspected at the Customs upon departure from Singapore.

To be an eligible tourist, you must not:
– Be a Singapore citizen or permanent resident;
– Be a member of the crew of an aircraft on which you are departing Singapore; and
– Be a specified person on the date of, or at any time within the period of 3 months immediately before the date of, the purchase, or on the date individual completes the application for a refund
“specified person” means any of the following individuals:
(a) an individual who has in force
(i) any work pass
(ii) a dependants pass
(iii) a “long term visit pass” or
(iv) a student’s pass

(b) an individual who is any of the following and resident in Singapore:
(i) an individual recognised by the Government as a diplomat, consular officer, an administration, technical or service staff or other staff appointed to or employed in any foreign Embassy, High Commission or Consulate in Singapore
(ii) an individual recognized by the Government as a staff appointed to or employed in any foreign Embassy, High Commission or Consulate in Singapore
(iii) an individual recognized by the Government as a staff appointed to or employed in an International Organisation, Representative Office or Trade Office or
(iv) a spouse or dependent child of any individual mentioned in sub-paragraph (i) or (ii).

You can get a tourist refund for all goods on which GST is charged, except:

a) Goods wholly or partly consumed in Singapore;
b) Goods exported for business or commercial purposes;
c) Goods that will be exported by freight; or
d) Services such as accommodation, car rental and entertainment.

The minimum purchase amount is SGD 100 (inclusive of GST). However, you may combine up to 3 same-day receipts from retailers with the same GST registration number.

The retailers or its appointed agents will deduct a handling/administration fee from the 7% refund due to the tourist for its refund services. Hence, tourist will not be refunded the full 7% GST that he/she has paid for the goods.

Your in-app refund wallet reflects the total amount of refund that you may claim.

You may also use the in-app tax calculator to find out the approximate amount of refund that can be claimed.

You may claim refund at the Changi International Airport or Seletar Airport before departing from Singapore.

Use the Tourego App to skip the queue and avoid touching kiosks.Simply click “Check-Out” to complete the tax refund process. You can choose your refund preference without having to queue for the eTRS self-help kiosks. Refund modes include: Cash, Credit Card, and Alipay. If you select Cash, you have to visit the Central Refund Counter.

Alternatively, you may queue for your turn at the eTRS self-help kiosks. Swipe your passport at the kiosk and follow the onscreen instructions to apply for your tax refund.

You may be prompted to present your goods before a Customs official.

Yes, you must still keep your paper receipts. Customs may require you to produce the original paper receipts during checks.

You may still log into your Tourego account using another device. Alternatively, you can present your physical passport to the cashier.

You can click “VIEW REFUNDS” in the Tourego App to check the status of all your eTRS transactions.

You may view your eTRS transactions in the Tourego app by clicking “View Refunds” or signing into your account via the User Portal on tourist.tourego.com.

Yes, you will need to re-enter Singapore, open Tourego App and click “Checkout” to get the refund, or to scan your passport at the kiosk to get the refund.

Please note that for goods above the value of SGD 500, GST will be imposed at the point of re-entry into Singapore. Where the value of goods is less than SGD 500, GST will not be imposed but you should still consider factors such as :
1) The cost of bringing the goods back to Singapore;
2) The goods must be completely unused;and
3) The goods must have left Singapore within 2 months

If you choose to use Tourego App to get the refund:
Click “Checkout” in Tourego App to finish the tax refund process, if it shows “Approved”, it means that the refund claim has been accepted. If it shows “Not Approved”, you will have to proceed to the Customs Inspection Counter for further verification with the goods, travel documents, passport, purchase receipt, boarding pass/ confirmed air ticket, etc.

If you choose to use kiosks to get the refund:
You can see the results after scanning your passport at the kiosk. If it shows “Approved”, it means that the refund claim has been accepted. If the kiosk shows “Not Approved”, you will have to proceed to the Customs Inspection Counter for further verification with the goods, travel documents, passport, purchase receipt, boarding pass/ confirmed air ticket, etc.

For bulky goods or goods to be checked-in, the refund must be claimed before check-in. For small and high-value goods (e.g. jewellery) that can be hand-carried, the tourist should claim the refund after immigration clearance. Please note that in both instances, Singapore Customs reserves the right to inspect the goods before processing the refund.

Yes.

Your refund will be credited to your specified credit card within 10 days. You may check the in-app refund statement found in your refund wallet to ascertain if the refund has been credited into your account.

For cash refunds, you will receive your cash refund in Singapore Dollars.
If you would like your refund to be credited to a Credit Card, your refund will be credited in the currency in which the credit card was issued.
If you would like your refund to be credited to Alipay, your refund will be credited in the currency that Alipay is using.

No. You may use a different credit card to claim your refund.