Why Paris
30 million tourists visit Paris each year. Fewer than 15% of eligible shoppers claim their VAT refund.
Non-EU visitors recover up to 16% of the purchase price on goods bought in France. A €2,000 shopping trip puts €250-320 back in your pocket. Five minutes at the airport.
You need three things: a passport at checkout, stores that participate, and €100.01 spent per store per day.
Stores that offer détaxe
Department stores
These three make it easy. Each has a dedicated tax refund desk, multilingual staff, and experience processing thousands of forms per week.
Galeries Lafayette Haussmann Boulevard Haussmann, 9e. Tax refund desk on the ground floor, near the main entrance. They process your form at the desk after purchase.
Le Bon Marché Rue de Sèvres, 7e. Quieter than Galeries Lafayette. Same process, shorter lines. The Grande Épicerie next door sells gourmet items that also qualify.
Printemps All Paris locations participate. The Haussmann flagship has a tax refund area on the ground floor.
Luxury boutiques
Most brands on these streets offer détaxe:
- Avenue Montaigne (Dior, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Valentino)
- Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré (Hermès, Lanvin, Goyard)
- Place Vendôme (Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Boucheron)
- Rue Saint-Honoré (Colette successors, Comme des Garçons)
Ask at checkout. The cashier will need your passport.
Electronics and beauty
- Apple Store (Champs-Élysées, Marais, Opéra): all locations
- Sephora (Champs-Élysées flagship is largest in Europe)
- Fnac (electronics, books, music)
- Darty (appliances, electronics)
Outlets
La Vallée Village (40 min from central Paris by RER): 100+ luxury outlets, all offering détaxe. Combined with outlet pricing, you save twice.
How the process works in Paris
At the store:
- Show your passport at checkout
- The cashier creates a digital bordereau (tax-free form) linked to your passport
- You receive a form with a barcode (print or email)
At CDG airport (before your flight):
- Find a PABLO kiosk in the departure hall
- Scan the barcode
- Green screen = validated. You're done.
No green screen? See the PABLO troubleshooting guide.
After validation: Your refund arrives on your credit card in 3-5 business days, or bank transfer in 5-10.
CDG PABLO kiosk locations
| Terminal | Where | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| T1 | Departure hall, near check-in | 6:00-22:00 |
| T2A/C | Departure level, before security | 5:30-22:00 |
| T2E/F | Departure hall + duty-free area (after security) | 5:30-22:30 |
| T2G | Departure area | 6:00-21:00 |
| T3 | Departure level | 6:00-21:00 |
Orly: PABLO kiosks in South Terminal departure hall.
Gare du Nord (Eurostar): Before passport control, near the customs area.
Mistakes that cost you money
Forgetting your passport. You need it at the store. The form links to your passport number. No passport = no form.
Splitting purchases across stores. Two €80 purchases at two different stores each fall below the €100.01 minimum. Traditional operators can't help you here: each store runs its own contract, its own bordereaux, its own system. Your purchases are siloed. With Belcova, you have a single account linked to your passport. Every purchase at a partner store feeds the same profile, so those two €80 receipts combine into one €160 claim that qualifies.
Arriving late to PABLO. Kiosks queue up between 6-9 AM during peak departures. Three forms to scan? Budget 20 minutes.
Wearing what you bought. Customs can ask to see your purchases. You show up wearing the €800 jacket, they reject the form. Keep items bagged with tags until after validation.
Accepting the default operator. Stores hand you a form processed by whichever operator they contract with, usually Global Blue or Planet. These incumbents keep 35-50% of your VAT refund as their fee. On a €1,000 purchase: the full refund is €167, but a traditional operator gives you €83-100. Belcova returns up to €133. That's €30-50 gone per form. Ask the store which operator they use before you buy.
Not checking the form. A single wrong digit in your passport number means a rejected PABLO scan. Verify before you leave the store.
Planning your shopping day
Morning: Start at one department store. Consolidate purchases above €100.01. Get your form processed at the tax refund desk before leaving.
Afternoon: Hit individual boutiques. Ask about détaxe before you commit to buying. Some smaller shops don't participate.
Before leaving Paris: Organize your forms. Group them by operator. Make sure every barcode is readable.
At the airport: Go to PABLO kiosks first, then check in. Keep purchased goods accessible in your carry-on.
FAQ
Do restaurants qualify? No. Services are excluded. Only physical goods you take out of the EU.
Can I shop at multiple stores? Yes. Each store issues a separate form. Each needs to be €100.01+. You scan each form at PABLO individually.
What about online purchases shipped to my hotel? Generally no. The store must create the form at the point of sale with your passport present. Some stores with physical locations might accommodate this if you pick up in-store.
I live in Monaco/Switzerland/UK. Do I qualify? Monaco: no (treated as France for customs). Switzerland: yes. UK: yes (post-Brexit, UK residents qualify).
What's the refund rate? France charges 20% VAT. On a €500 purchase, €83 is tax. Traditional operators (Global Blue, Planet) keep 35-50% of that as their fee: you get €42-54 back. Belcova returns up to 80%: €67 on the same purchase. Over a full shopping trip, the gap reaches hundreds of euros. See the operator comparison.
Belcova is launching soon. Get notified when we open.