Reclaiming Tax from Purchases in America?
Discussion
Not sure they will do that, but the Macys in NYC will give you a discount card as a visitor that gives you the equivalent discount to the sales taxes plus a bit more (10% discount, sales taxes here 8.5%). Have a word with their customer services desk and be prepared to show them a passport of driving licence to prove you're not a local.
BTW - the accent doesn;t seem to count as convincing enough you're not a local
BTW - the accent doesn;t seem to count as convincing enough you're not a local
CVP said:
Not sure they will do that, but the Macys in NYC will give you a discount card as a visitor that gives you the equivalent discount to the sales taxes plus a bit more (10% discount, sales taxes here 8.5%). Have a word with their customer services desk and be prepared to show them a passport of driving licence to prove you're not a local.
BTW - the accent doesn;t seem to count as convincing enough you're not a local
Bloomingdales do that too.BTW - the accent doesn;t seem to count as convincing enough you're not a local
Easty-5 said:
I'm assuming you mean only items purchased from Macy's in the first place?
(probably a stupid question)
I heard it is anything you buy in the US. A chap I know who comes to the US a lot says I need to tell the shop will be claiming my tax back and they will give me a form. At the airport I can claim money back. (probably a stupid question)
Will head over to Macy's shortly and see what they say.
erolb said:
Right, just got back from the shops. Everyone looked at me as though I was mad, however the woman at the mac store said it needed to be sorted out at the airport. Not sure if I can be bothered as I'll be panicing about flights too much.
How do you go about doing it at the airport. Do you know? I will be over in Orlando for 3 weeks at the end of may, and I will probably spend in excess of £3k on clothes, watches etc. If I can claim the tax back then that would be awesome. I was over in october and spent £2000 on bits and bobs and never even thought about trying to claim tax back. I didn't even realise you could.Easty-5 said:
How do you go about doing it at the airport. Do you know? I will be over in Orlando for 3 weeks at the end of may, and I will probably spend in excess of £3k on clothes, watches etc. If I can claim the tax back then that would be awesome. I was over in october and spent £2000 on bits and bobs and never even thought about trying to claim tax back. I didn't even realise you could.
It'll certainly offset the custom charges if you get stung on the way back 
There's a much easier way... simply do your clothes shopping in New Jersey and there is no sales tax, it's actually what most of the locals do. Besides, shopping Malls in New Jersey are worth seeing as an attraction in their own right.
I live in the area... there's three shopping centers just west of the George Washington Bridge worth going to. Take Route 4 West of the George Washington Bridge.
1) Garden State Plaza in Paramus. It's about a third bigger than Bluewater. It's got a Macy's, Lord and Taylor, Neiman-Marcus, Nordstrom and JC Penny and a few hundred other shops, theatre, etc. It's at the junction of Rt 17 and about 10 minutes W of the bridge without traffic.
2) Shops at Riverside in Hackensack. Not as big, but it's a very upscale mall, it's got Bloomingdale's and Saks Fifth Avenue, mostly very high end shops. It's on Route 4 about 2 miles closer to NY City than Garden State Plaza.
3) Bergen Town Center. This is on Rt 4 in Paramus, about 2/3 of the way to Garden State Plaza from the Shops at Riverside. It's got a number of Upscale Department store outlets, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avnue and Nordstrom. This is an outlet Mall, savings can be excellent. I just bought 3 Brioni ties there for $199
Be forewarned... due to silly laws all of these shopping centers are closed on Sundays. Also, Saturdays, especially during the Holidays can be absolutely packed. The best time to go is during the week.
Go there and you'll notice how many cars in the parking lot have New York plates... a quick look at the license plate frames will show that most are from NY City.
I live in the area... there's three shopping centers just west of the George Washington Bridge worth going to. Take Route 4 West of the George Washington Bridge.
1) Garden State Plaza in Paramus. It's about a third bigger than Bluewater. It's got a Macy's, Lord and Taylor, Neiman-Marcus, Nordstrom and JC Penny and a few hundred other shops, theatre, etc. It's at the junction of Rt 17 and about 10 minutes W of the bridge without traffic.
2) Shops at Riverside in Hackensack. Not as big, but it's a very upscale mall, it's got Bloomingdale's and Saks Fifth Avenue, mostly very high end shops. It's on Route 4 about 2 miles closer to NY City than Garden State Plaza.
3) Bergen Town Center. This is on Rt 4 in Paramus, about 2/3 of the way to Garden State Plaza from the Shops at Riverside. It's got a number of Upscale Department store outlets, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avnue and Nordstrom. This is an outlet Mall, savings can be excellent. I just bought 3 Brioni ties there for $199
Be forewarned... due to silly laws all of these shopping centers are closed on Sundays. Also, Saturdays, especially during the Holidays can be absolutely packed. The best time to go is during the week.
Go there and you'll notice how many cars in the parking lot have New York plates... a quick look at the license plate frames will show that most are from NY City.
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