1.What documents must be included in the basic filing materials?

According to the latest "Management Measures for the Refund (Exemption) of Tax on Exported Goods" issued in 2025,enterprises entrusting agents to handle tax refunds are required to provide the following basic materials:

• Originalcustomsdeclarationform:Customs-clearedexportcustomsdeclarationformrequired
• SpecialVATInvoice:
  • Originalinvoiceandtaxdeductioncopy.
  • Theinformationmustexactlymatchthatonthecustomsdeclaration.
• Contract/Order: Original document with the signatures of both the buyer and the seller.
• Voucher:
  • Bank’sforeignexchangereceiptvoucher(newSWIFTmessagerequirementseffectivefrom2025onwards)
  • Cross-borderRMBsettlementrequiresthesubmissionofRCPMISsystemmessages.

2.What additional materials are required for special trade methods?

For different trade methods,additional specialized supporting documents are required:

• :ElectronicDataFilingNumberforPlatformTransactions
• Marketprocurementtrade:1039SupervisedPremisesShippingOrder
• Processingtrade：Customs-verifiedprocessingtrademanual
• Returnedgoods:SingleandReturnAgreement

III.What are the new requirements for electronic declaration in 2025?

From January 1,2025,the State Taxation Administration will comprehensively implement the electronic filing of tax refund materials:

• electronicsignatures:Allscannedcopiesmustusecertifiedelectronicsignatures.
• Datamatching:Thecustomsdeclarationnumber,invoicecode,etc.mustbeautomaticallycomparedwiththeGoldenTaxPhaseIIIsystem.
• Datapreservation:Theretentionperiodforelectronicrecordshasbeenextendedto10years.

IV.What are the common mistakes in document preparation?

Based on thousands of tax refund cases we have handled,we found that companies often make the following mistakes:

• Timedislocation:Theinvoiceissuancedateislaterthanthecustomsdeclarationdate.
• Valuedeviation:Thedifferencebetweentheinvoiceamountandthecustomsdeclarationamountexceeds5%.
• Discrepancybetweendocuments:TheHScodeofthegoodsisinconsistentbeforeandafterdeclaration.
• Sealmissing：Missingthecorporateinvoicespecialsealorofficialseal.

5.How to Prevent Risks in Tax Refund Documentation?

It is recommended that enterprises establish a three-tier review mechanism:

• Businessdepartmentpreliminaryreview:Verifytheconsistencybetweenthecontractandthedocuments.
• Financedepartmentreview:Verifytaxcompliance
• Finalreviewbytheagency:Verifytheaccuracyofthedeclarationsystemdata

Please pay special attention to the new additions in 2025.Filing pre-review systemIt is recommended to complete the preliminary document review 15 working days prior to the export of the goods.

6.What responsibilities should the agency bear?

Legitimate agency services should include the following core services:

• DocumentIntegrityReview
• TaxRiskWarning
• DeclarationProgressTracking
• Exceptionhandling

Special reminder: According to the "Regulations on Foreign Trade Agency Services" issued in 2025,agencies are required to bear joint and several liability for the authenticity of the declared materials.