A Vietnamese tourist (right) purchases shoes and receives an instant tax refund in Qingtian county, Lishui, Zhejiang province. [Photo/Tide News]

The Zhejiang Provincial Tax Service has become the first in China to recognize designated tax-refund agencies across provincial-level regions, working with the Shanghai Municipal Tax Service to integrate in-store tax-refund services for overseas travelers.

The service was expanded across Zhejiang on April 30, marking a step toward integrated departure tax refund services in the Yangtze River Delta region and making cross-city and cross-provincial shopping refunds easier for overseas visitors.

Hangzhou was the first pilot city for the service. Overseas travelers who shop and receive tax refunds at any In-store Tax Refund Merchant in Hangzhou can now depart from four designated ports in Shanghai after completing the required verification with valid documents.

Zhejiang has introduced In-store Tax Refund Merchants and completed the first related transactions in all 11 cities. The province has 866 departure tax refund stores, including 468 In-store Tax Refund Merchants.

Sales of tax-refund-eligible goods in Zhejiang rose 123.22 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026.