Frequently Asked Questions

If you reside in a non-European Union country and have been traveling in Spain, purchasing different items, before your departure at the airport, authorized Collaborating Entities such as Global Exchange will refund you the taxes paid for those purchases made in the European Union. This is known as VAT refund or Tax Free Refund.
Steps to follow:
1. Request the documents from SIMUFY that certify you as the holder of the tax refund (Tax Free). The traveler must provide the following information: full name, country of residence, date of birth, and passport number of the traveler, for the proper issuance of the DER (Tax Free Form).
2. When you arrive at the airport, the first and essential step is to present your Tax Free documentation (DER) at the DIVA machines for digital validation (if the purchases were made in Spain).
3. Once your Tax Free documents (DER) have been validated (or stamped), it is necessary to go to the Global Exchange offices to request your refund.
The VAT refund (Tax Free Refund) can only be accessed if the documents have been previously validated at the DIVA machines or at the Customs Service.
The companies that Global Exchange has collaboration agreements with are: Global Blue, Planet, Innova, Travel Tax Free, and Tax Refund.
Cash is the only refund method that Global Exchange can manage for tax refunds.
Once the documents are validated (by the DIVA machines or by the Customs Service), the user has up to 4 years to request the refund..

Yes, as long as they reside in a country that does not belong to the European Union and also meet the following requirements:
• The tourist must provide proof of their identity and residence outside the European Union at the time of purchase.
• The purchases must be documented in an invoice and an electronic refund document (DER) submitted to the Tax Agency.
• The purchases must have been made in the mainland or the Balearic Islands. Purchases made in the Canary Islands or the cities of Ceuta and Melilla are not eligible for this scheme.
• The goods must not constitute a commercial shipment. They must have been acquired for personal use, for the use of family members, or as gifts. The nature and quantity of the goods should not imply that they are intended for commercial activity.
• The purchased goods must actually leave the territory of the European Union within three months from the date of delivery.

SIMUFY must issue the corresponding invoice and additionally an electronic refund document (DER), both at the time of purchase. The DER is available on the Electronic Headquarters of the State Tax Administration Agency, where the purchased goods and the corresponding tax will be recorded separately.
The following traveler's information must be included in the electronic refund document: identity, country of residence, date of birth, and passport number of the traveler. The traveler must provide this information to SIMUFY.
The collaborating entity must verify the visa of the DER as a prerequisite for issuing the refund. Additionally, they must notify the Tax Agency that the refund has been processed.
The copy of the form provided (DER) to the travelers will contain a CSV (secure verification code), which allows the traveler to track the status of their VAT refund request at any time.
It is important to note that the DER provided to the traveler must include a barcode or QR code for subsequent scanning at the time of stamping.

To recover the VAT paid in Spain by non-European Union resident travelers, it is necessary that these VAT charges have been previously invoiced and documented in invoices. Additionally, SIMUFY must submit an electronic refund document (DER) to the Tax Agency.
In Spain, the recovery of VAT charges previously paid by non-resident travelers is carried out through authorized Collaborating Entities approved by the Tax Agency. In this case, travelers will present the DER documents stamped by Customs to these entities, who will reimburse the VAT paid on the purchase of goods, deducting the corresponding authorized commission. The traveler must give their consent to such refund. Subsequently, the Collaborating Entities will send the DER documents stamped by Customs to the providers who will make the corresponding refund, in this case, in full.
The refund of VAT to travelers by the Collaborating Entity can be made in cash, credit card, check, or bank transfer.

It is a condition for the refund of input VAT on purchases of goods by non-resident travelers in the EU territory that the goods actually leave the EU territory within a maximum period of three months following the purchase. The VAT Directive 2006/112/EC states more clearly that the goods must be transported ""out of the Community before the end of the third month following that in which the supply takes place"". Example:
- Date of supply: 5 May (evidenced by the date of the invoice).
- Effective date of departure: Before August 31.

The traveler may request the refund of the VAT paid on his purchases in SIMUFY, provided that he meets all the legal requirements and that the electronic refund document (DER), which accredits his purchase, is correctly stamped by the customs office of departure. The maximum term to request the refund is the general four-year prescription period, coinciding with the term of the supplier's right to rectification of the duties charged. Once this period has elapsed, the supplier is not obliged to refund the VAT.