We refer to the letter '为何退消费税要用支票' published on 31 Dec 09 by 王玉华.

We are pleased to inform that IRAS is working on a new refund system to make it easy for tourists to obtain GST refunds at the airport before they leave Singapore.

Under the current Tourist Refund Scheme retailers who choose to make GST refunds to tourists may either operate the refund scheme on their own or engage the services of a Central Refund agency to do so.

Usually, tourists who have bought the goods from retailers who operate the scheme on their own will receive the refund from the retailers by way of cheques at their preferred address. Tourists who have bought the goods from retailers affiliated to Global Refund or Premier Tax Free, the 2 Central Refund Agencies in Singapore, can proceed directly to the cash refund counters operated by these Central Refund agencies at Changi Airport to obtain their GST refunds in either cash, cheque or through direct crediting to their credit card or bank account.

Tourists are advised to check with the retailers on the refund claim procedures at the time of purchase. Tourists may also refer to IRAS' website at www.iras.gov.sg to know more about the Tourist Refund Scheme.

We would like to thank the writer for her feedback.