Korean convenience stores are a must when visiting Korea to the point that they have become a rite of passage for visitors. Browse social media and you’ll find plenty of photos of visitors and all the yummy foods they found at K-convenience stores. To add to their charm, some GS25 convenience stores are now offering an immediate tax refund service! It’s super simple to use.
Immediate Tax Refund
- Eligible shoppers: Foreigners staying in Korea for less than six months
- Eligible amount: Single purchases totaling 30,000 won ~ 500,000 won, up to a total of 2,500,000 won during total duration of stay
- Refund details: Value-Added Tax (VAT; 10% of total cost), excluding the refund service fee
- Process: Scan passport on the passport reader machine – Receive approval (within 10 seconds) – View price without value-added tax – Purchase
- Notice: Must depart Korea within three months after making the purchase
K-convenience stores proving real convenience to tourists
K-convenience stores are well known for providing true convenience, through their many services. Not just limited to selling goods, they also offer package delivery and even currency exchange services. Immediate tax refund is a newer service provided to foreign visitors at over 440 branches of GS25. 25 of these branches also offer a currency exchange kiosk, to easily convert foreign currencies into Korean won.
From purchase to tax refund, could it get any easier?
The immediate tax refund sounds super easy, so how can you use it? Just visit GS25 with your passport! We partnered up with GS25 Mugyo YG Tower Branch* to show you just how easy it is. After scanning all the items we wished to purchase, the staff scanned the passport. We checked the price without the value-added tax and that’s all we paid!
* Address: 40, Namdaemun-ro 9-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul; 191 m from Euljiro 1(il)-ga Station (Seoul Subway Line 2), Exit 1-1
- Operating hours: Open 24/7, all year round (* Hours vary by location)
- Inquiries: +82-1644-5425 (Toll line; Korean only)
- Call center hours: Monday-Friday 09:00-18:00 - Website: gs25.gsretail.com (Korean, English, Chinese)
- Ride the Wave into Non-stop K-Convenience Culture
