Duty-Free Shopping Policy for Travelers Leaving Hainan Island (June 29, 2020)

Duty-Free Shopping Policy for Travelers Leaving Hainan Island (June 29, 2020)

On June 1, 2020, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council issued the “Overall Plan for the Construction of Hainan Free Trade Port.” This plan proposed increasing the annual duty-free shopping limit for travellers leaving the island to 100,000 yuan per person and expanding the range of duty-free goods.

Compared to the previous policy, the main adjustments in the “Announcement” include:

1. Increasing the duty-free shopping quota from 30,000 yuan to 100,000 yuan per person per year.
2. Expanding the range of duty-free goods from 38 to 45 categories.
3. Removing the 8,000 yuan duty-free limit on individual items.
4. Focusing primarily on quota management and significantly reducing the types of goods with quantity restrictions for single purchases.
5. Encouraging moderate competition by allowing all qualified duty-free businesses to equally participate in the duty-free operations on Hainan Island.
6. Strengthening supervision during and after the fact, and clearly stating the legal responsibilities for individuals, enterprises, and duty-free shops involved in reselling or smuggling.

According to customs statistics, as of the end of 2019, a total of 16.31 million people had made purchases under this policy, with duty-free sales amounting to 53.8 billion yuan. The recent policy adjustments are significant and are expected to greatly enhance the shopping experience for consumers, unlock the benefits of the policy, increase the public’s sense of satisfaction, promote the construction of Hainan as an international tourism consumption centre, and strengthen confidence in the development of the Hainan Free Trade Port.

Announcement on the Duty-Free Shopping Policy for Travelers Leaving Hainan Island

Ministry of Finance, General Administration of Customs, State Taxation Administration 2020 No. 33

To implement the “Overall Plan for the Construction of Hainan Free Trade Port,” and with the approval of the State Council, the duty-free shopping policy for travellers leaving Hainan Island (hereinafter referred to as the “duty-free policy”) is announced as follows:

1. The duty-free policy applies to travellers departing Hainan Island by airplane, train, or ship (excluding those leaving the country). It allows them to purchase goods without import taxes, within specified limits on value, quantity, and types of goods. Purchases can be made at designated duty-free shops on the island (hereinafter referred to as “duty-free shops”) or at approved online sales windows. Travelers can collect their purchases in designated areas at airports, train stations, or ports when leaving the island. The duty-free policy exempts travellers from customs duties, import value-added tax, and consumption tax.
2. The term “traveller” in this announcement refers to individuals who are at least 16 years old, have purchased tickets for departing Hainan Island by airplane, train, or ship, and possess valid identification (ID cards for domestic travellers, travel documents for travellers from Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, and passports for foreign travellers). This includes both domestic and international travellers, as well as residents of Hainan Province, who are leaving Hainan Island but not the country.
3. Each traveller is entitled to a duty-free shopping quota of 100,000 RMB per year, with no limit on the number of purchases. The types of duty-free goods and the quantity restrictions for each purchase are detailed in the attachment to this announcement. Any portion exceeding the duty-free limit or quantity will be subject to import taxes as per regulations.

After a traveller makes a purchase and departs Hainan Island by airplane, train, or ship, it is recorded as one duty-free shopping instance.

• The term “duty-free shops” in this announcement refers to stores that are qualified to implement the duty-free policy and operate under a special license. Currently, these include Haikou Meilan Airport Duty-Free Shop, Haikou Riyue Plaza Duty-Free Shop, Qionghai Bo’ao Duty-Free Shop, and Sanya Haitang Bay Duty-Free Shop.

Qualified businesses with the appropriate duty-free sales licenses can participate in the duty-free operations on Hainan Island as per regulations.

• Travelers leaving the island can purchase duty-free goods within the national limits on value and quantity at designated duty-free shops or approved online sales windows. The duty-free shops will transport the goods according to the travellers’ departure times. Travelers can collect their purchases with their shopping receipts in designated areas at airports, train stations, or ports, and carry them off the island in one go.

• Duty-free goods purchased are intended for personal use by the consumer and are not permitted to be resold in the domestic market.

• Individuals found violating the provisions of this announcement by reselling, purchasing on behalf of others, or smuggling duty-free goods will be recorded in the credit system according to laws and regulations. They will be prohibited from purchasing duty-free goods for three years. Those engaged in smuggling or violating customs regulations will be dealt with by customs authorities according to relevant regulations, and if their actions constitute a crime, they will be prosecuted criminally according to the law.

Travel agencies, transportation companies, and other entities found assisting in violating the duty-free policy or disrupting market order will be subject to comprehensive industry regulation.

Duty-free shops found violating relevant regulations in the sale of duty-free goods will be dealt with and penalized by customs authorities according to relevant laws and administrative regulations.

• The regulatory measures for the duty-free policy will be separately announced by the General Administration of Customs.

The VAT and consumption tax exemption policies applicable to duty-free goods sold by duty-free shops will be governed by additional regulations formulated by the State Taxation Administration in consultation with the Ministry of Finance.

1. This announcement shall take effect from July 1, 2020. The following announcements issued by the Ministry of Finance, namely No. 14 of 2011, No. 73 of 2012, No. 8 of 2015, No. 15 of 2016, No. 7 of 2017, and the joint announcements of the Ministry of Finance, General Administration of Customs, and State Taxation Administration No. 158 of 2018 and No. 175 of 2018, are hereby repealed.

Ministry of Finance, General Administration of Customs, State Taxation Administration

June 29, 2020

Here is the list of duty-free goods and the quantity limits per person per purchase:

Category: Quantity Limit per Person per Purchase

1. Jewelry: Unlimited
2. Crafts: Unlimited
3. Watches: Unlimited
4. Perfume: Unlimited
5. Cosmetics: 30 items
6. Pens: Unlimited
7. Glasses (including sunglasses): Unlimited
8. Scarves: Unlimited
9. Ties: Unlimited
10. Woolen products: Unlimited
11. Cotton products: Unlimited
12. Clothing and apparel: Unlimited
13. Shoes and hats: Unlimited
14. Belts: Unlimited
15. Bags: Unlimited
16. Small leather goods: Unlimited
17. Sweets: Unlimited
18. Sports equipment: Unlimited
19. Beauty and health equipment: Unlimited
20. Tableware and kitchenware: Unlimited
21. Toys (including strollers): Unlimited
22. Retail-packaged infant formula and baby food: Unlimited
23. Coffee (coffee beans; espresso): Unlimited
24. Ginseng products (American ginseng; red ginseng; Korean ginseng capsules and powders): Unlimited (Not for first-time import; must have obtained import approval certificate for health food)
25. Cereal flakes: Wheat essence, grain flour, and other processed food; dairy products: Sweet biscuits; wafers and communion wafers; pastries, biscuits, and baked goods and similar products: Unlimited
26. Health supplements: Unlimited (Not for first-time import; must have obtained import approval certificate for health food)
27. Royal jelly products: Unlimited (Not for first-time import; must have obtained import approval certificate for health food)
28. Olive oil: Unlimited
29. Diapers: Unlimited
30. Ceramic products (porcelain dishes, etc.): Unlimited
31. Glass products (glass dishes, etc.): Unlimited
32. Household air purifiers and accessories: Unlimited
33. Household hardware (locks; faucets; shower devices): Unlimited
34. Clocks (wall clocks; desk clocks; alarm clocks, etc.): Unlimited
35. Adapters: Unlimited
36. Watch straps, watch chains: Unlimited
37. Eyeglass lenses, eyeglass frames: Unlimited
38. Class I and Class II household medical devices (blood glucose meters; blood glucose test strips; electronic blood pressure monitors; infrared body thermometers; vision training devices; hearing aids; orthopaedic fixation devices; home respiratory machines): Unlimited (Must have obtained import medical device registration certificate or filing certificate)
39. Natural honey and other edible animal products (natural honey; bird’s nest; fresh royal jelly; other bee and edible animal products): Unlimited
40. Tea, mate tea, and products made primarily from tea or mate tea (green tea; black tea; mate tea; products made primarily from tea or mate tea): Unlimited
41. Tablets; other portable automatic data processing equipment; small automatic data processing equipment; microcomputers; other data processing equipment; small computers reported in system form; microcomputers reported in system form: Unlimited
42. Wearable devices and other electronic consumer products (wireless headphones; other devices for receiving, converting, and transmitting or reproducing audio or other data; video game controllers and equipment parts and accessories): Unlimited
43. Mobile phones: 4 pieces
44. Video game consoles: Unlimited
45. Alcoholic beverages (beer, wine, sake, spirits, and fermented beverages): Total volume not exceeding 1500 millilitres

Note: A “piece” refers to an item with single, complete packaging and individual pricing, but packaged items count as one.

Related article: Compilation of important policies for Hainan Free Trade Port (February 2024)