Hi all,
a friend of mine from back home is coming to Sydney and i would like to buy a gift for my sister back home and she could bring it back and give it to my sister.
i will pay for the goods, with my credit card and it is over AUD $300.
im wondering if my friend can claim the TRS in the airport? has anyone done this before?
would they raise questions if they see the credit card name is different with the one who is travelling (my friend).
Thanks
credit card details shouldn't be visible on the receipt.
The receipt should be generic and should not contain any names should you want your friend to claim it for you.
If the invoice contains your name, your friend won't be able to claim it for you.
the goods price im planning to get is $999,95 + shipping $9,95 will check if it will stated my name or not.
Generally the credit card name doesn't get transferred onto the invoice. An online purchase often has two names+addresses, a Bill To, which will be you, and a Ship To, which should be your friend. And will be your friend's CC that gets the refund since you won't be at the TRS counter airside.
brilliant, you are right.
since they wont have my credit card name stated anywhere in the invoice, can i put down my credit card number in the claim form instead?
No, they need a real credit card to swipe to process the refund.
As the total is over $1000, it may have your name on it.
at the TRS, the processing officer just wants to look at the item and the original invoice (with ABN printed on the invoice)
if that invoice happens to a different name to the name of the passenger, then this will cause trouble.
so, if satisfied that the item is matching what is listed on the invoice, you need to present a credit card, for the refund to go into it.
at this time, sometimes the processing officer also reminds you that you should not bring the item back to Australia, and if you do, you have to declare it, too.
Just download the TRS App on your phone and fill in the details. The receipt should have the ABN, the GST amount and the traveller's name (in this case your friend's name, not yours), and in the refund payments screen just put in your bank account details. You can only put down an actual bank account I believe, so Savings account etc, not a credit card account. The customs officer won't ask for a card to process the refund into if you've already filled out this part. When your friend is at the airport, he/she will have to show the item and the receipt in his/her name and there shouldn't be any problems. Just be mindful though that the line is usually 1.5 hours wait, so make sure you give plenty of time. Also, if it is a watch, they will check for the serial number and record it.
yes i checked the app, and it asks the account name, im afraid this could raise a flag to the officer
Nah, I don't think this will cause any issues. The only thing the customs officers are looking for is whether if you're going to bring the item back. Who gets the refund isn't really their problem as you've agreed to the terms and made the declaration, so you can't come back later and say that you didn't want the refund transferred to that account. If they do ask, your friend can just say "I'm going overseas for a while and won't be checking my bank account, so I just want my friend to temporarily hold on to that money for me".
Quick question, the last time I claimed via TRS it was before the whole app / online systems. I read that with the App claims there is an express line to speed up the process, but have seen countless reviews saying the process is broken. Does any one have recent experience using the App. Do you still have to wait over an hour?
I haven't had to wait an hour, the most was 30 minutes, but maybe I have been lucky and not hit peak times. I think nearly always the code queue is faster if only because they don't have to type anything in.
Oops, I forgot to check which airport the OP is travelling from. My experience was at Melbourne Airport and the app queue was about the same as the traditional queue and only marginally faster, mainly because everyone heard about the app and are all switching to the app now hoping that it'll be faster. I don't really claim TRS often but from some frequent travellers I spoke to when I was there last month, they said the waiting time at Melbourne Airport's TRS counter is usually around 1.5 hours most times.
I don't think the credit card name appears on the invoice with GST stated which is what they want to see. And some credit card to refund the GST to. So it will be your friend that gets the refund.
* she could take it back (she's leaving, so the direction is away from you)