Export tax rebate policy has always been the focus of enterprises.
In 2026, the export tax rebate policy will usher in a new round of improvements and adjustments, which will allow foreign trade companies to enjoy more conveniences while also facing new compliance challenges.
So, what mistakes do foreign trade companies make that may turn tax refunds into tax reimbursements?
This issue of “Tax Made Easy” is specially explained for you.
This year 1
In March, the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation issued regulatory documents related to export tax refund (exemption), and made important optimizations and adjustments in many aspects such as export tax refund (exemption) declaration and filing documents.
There are three key time points – 36 months, April 30 of the following year and 10 years, which will directly affect the tax refund processing of enterprises.
Let’s first talk about the newly added “36 months”, which corresponds to the adjustment of the filing period.
Specifically, enterprises should declare export tax rebates and export tax exemptions within each value-added tax declaration period from the date of export declaration to April 30 of the next year; if taxpayers do not declare within the above period, they can declare within each value-added tax declaration period from April 30 of the next year to 36 months from the date of export declaration.
We need to remind everyone that if the declaration is not made after the 36-month declaration period, it will be regarded as domestic sales tax.
For goods exported after January 1, 2026, the tax refund declaration period can still be declared after April 30 of the following year. There is no specific time limit. It is adjusted to be completed before April 30 of the following year of export. Those who miss this deadline will have to make supplementary returns for each tax declaration period within 36 months from the date of export.
If you miss even this deadline, it will be directly regarded as domestic sales and tax payment.
Looking at the time node of “April 30 of the following year”, it corresponds to the deadline for collection of foreign exchange: For export tax refund business that has been declared, the collection of foreign exchange needs to be completed before April 30 of the following year after export.
If the foreign exchange is not collected on time and does not meet the conditions for deemed foreign exchange collection, the refunded tax will need to be refunded.
Therefore, “procrastination” must be treated when it needs to be treated, and “madha” must also be careful.
In addition, the storage period of the filing documents has been extended to 10 years. If the information is missing, the consequences will be serious.
The retention period of taxpayers’ export tax refund filing documents has been adjusted from the past 5 years to 10 years. Taxpayers should properly retain the filing documents within 15 days after applying for export tax refund for future reference.
The 15th day here refers to 15 natural days, not 15 working days.
Export tax rebates cannot be applied for export goods that do not undergo document filing in accordance with regulations, and the export tax exemption policy needs to be applied.
Therefore, I would like to remind everyone to keep and keep the registration documents well.
While guiding enterprises to operate in compliance, the policy also simplifies and optimizes the processing methods for export tax refunds (exemptions), making it more convenient for export enterprises to handle tax refunds.
Relying on big data and new technologies, comprehensive electronic export tax refund (exemption) certificates have become a reality.
In the past, six types of export tax rebate certificates have been issued electronically. On this basis, starting from January 1, 2026, the tax department will include three types of certificates, including the “Certificate of Tax Paid/Non-Tax Refund for Export Goods”, into the scope of electronic issuance.
In this way, all nine types of certificates have been issued electronically, making it easier for taxpayers to issue electronic certificates without leaving home.
Recently, my country has made adjustments to the export tax rebate rate for battery products.
From April 1 to December 31, 2026, the export tax rebate rate for battery products will be reduced from 9% to 6%; starting from January 1, 2027, the export tax rebate for battery products will be directly cancelled.
We need to remind everyone that the export tax rebate policy adjustment time mentioned earlier is based on the export date on the export customs declaration. As long as the export is completed before the policy adjustment, you can enjoy the policy, and you can also apply for tax refund after the policy adjustment.
