When applying to have your GST tax refunded -- be sure to pick up the form directly from the Canada customs and revenue dept. It is the only form which does not include a processing fee. You will find other tax refund forms at the airports and at your hotels -- but these carry a service charge -- between a $7 to a 20% fee. Be sure to read the fine print and the back of the form to know you are using another company to process your refund.

To learn more go to : www.ccra.gc.ca/forms


We never found the Toronto tax refund station -- as we were continuing our flights back into the states and it seemed that after we cleared customs and had our luggage re-scanned -- they went back on the belt to the airplane cargo hold. Luckily, we had our purchase receipts stamped at the Montreal airport before checking our luggage. The agent in Montreal was not going to stamp it because of the Toronto plane change. However, I am glad she did because the Toronto connection for U S travellers is complicated and problematic if you have a tight plane connection. [I think you have to go to a different terminal to have your purchase receipts stamped]

I just think that Canada is not making it convienent for U S travellers to obtain this refund -- which frustrates visitors who are unacustom to this kind of run around. I would appreciate hearing from seasoned travellers if there was a better way to figure this out. We flew from Montreal to Toronto -- plane change then on to our destination in the US -- via Air Canada.

Do they have different rules now? I flew San Francisco - Toronto -Montreal RT in 1999 and had no idea I need a stamp! Came home, printed out a form from that website you mentioned, and mailed it all. Don't remember how soon a check came in. Did not take long.

FainaAgain, yes, they do have different rules now than they did in 1999 and rheamarie is providing some good advice concerning the requirement to have receipts stamped before leaving Canada, as well as warning people to avoid the many exploitive "services" offered in visitor publications that extract a substantial fee for being the middleman in the transaction. I also agree that the changes have made it more difficult to claim the refund and it is doubtful that it's an accident.

I totally agree that Canada has all these "fuzzy" rules surrounding the claim of tax refunds. At one store I went to in Montreal, they were using the refund as a big selling point, but on none of the forms that we filled out was it indicated the exact amount one needed to spend in one store to actually qualify for the refund. It ended up in a lot of wasted time filling out forms for nothing! Frustrated, I later called a Canadian tax refund representative when I got home in NYC, and she even apologized for the lack of clarity and information provided to tourists!

Thank you, that's nice to know as I'm sure I'll go back for a visit!

Here is a link to an offical Canadian Govt. site that explains all the rules in order to receive your GST refund.The site also has a link where you can download the actual form.
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tax/nonresi...ors/tax-e.html

Perhaps I have been misinterpreting the GST refund regs, but I've never stopped off at the border to have my receipts stamped. On the other hand, we've never spent enough on the carry-about items to warrant refunds. Our only refunds have been from hotels, and we waited til we returned home, downloaded the GST refund form from the official Canadian gov't website, attached our receipts and mailed them in. Always received our refunds within a few weeks.

Lodging receipts do not need to be stamped, however if you purchase articles (clothing etc.) they will qualify for the refund if the purchase is $50 or greater. The reason for the stamping of the original receipt is to make sure the articles on which the GST has been paid (and is going to be refunded) actually leaves the country. You must have the articles with you for inspection when you go through the tax refund office. My sister had to present the wedding dress she purchased before the officer stamped the receipt.

My question still remains in the Toronto airport -- for a U S connecting passenger -- where is the tax refund office. We arrived in one terminal and had to be bussed to another, go through customs, and then be transported back to our departing terminal.

Being a citizen and resident of Canada, I've never applied for GST Refund, so have no personal experience of this. However, according to a website that provides information on Ontario, the locations of the Customs booths at which you can get your receipts stamped are in the following locations in Pearson International (Toronto) Airport:

* Terminal I - Customs Information Center, Arrivals level

* Terminal II - Customs Information Center, Arrivals level beside Area A

* Terminal III - Customs Information Center, Arrivals level beside Area C

http://www.2ontario.com/traveltips/tips22.asp

Waltd, now I remember there is a question in the tax refund form - how did you cross the border? Last time we took a bus, that's why we did not care for a stamp, and got the refund from home. I heard the rules are different now if you take a plane. What a pain

FainAgain: For refund on lodging, I think the rules are the same any way you exit Canada - no need to visit Canadian customs before exiting. We've driven and have taken airplanes and have never bothered with Canadian Customs. The website which Judy has referenced should clear it up for retail purchases. While some commentators suggest that Canada makes it difficult intentionally so as to save money on the refunds, I don't think that's the case at all. The Canadian government earns vastly more on other taxes paid by tourists than they refund through the GST. The GST refund program is a tool used by Canada to lure tourists and it's a good program. As rheamarie suggests, the government does want to ensure that the refunds are legitimate. Even though we tend to spend more than we figure on gifts and such, we buy them along the way and not from the same store or vendor, so we never have enough on one purchase to rate the refund -ha!

Could you clairify this Tax Stamp and where to get it if we are traveling to Canada by car. We will being going through customs near Waterton Park one way and probably International Falls the other (don't know which way where yet). Is there an office near these sites we should stop at first before crossing?

Thank you for your help.

There is a customs desk at nearly every border crossing for having your receipts for purchases stamped, usually within a duty-free shop. There's a website (do a search) listing the "facilities" at all the border crossings.

As noted above, hotel receipts do not require stamps. If you've made qualifying purchases, since you have to have your receipts stamped, you may as well just have your refund processed right then and there. No matter how long the line, it moves very quickly.

As noted above, if you have only hotel receipts, be SURE to use an official form, which you can download from the website. The one time I inadvertently used a third-party form, I never did get the refund (though they probably did). This was before stamps were required on receipts for purchases.

I read that the stamps are required now a) to prevent visitors from getting ripped off (when you get the stamps, they provide the official form, whereupon you can mail it in or just process it on the spot) and b) because receipts were being mailed to the USA for processing for goods that never left the country.

If you're flying home, your refund must be processed at your last Canadian airport, though you can have your receipts stamped at any airport. You must allow adequate time, and look carefully for the desk/window as soon as you enter the terminal so as not to miss it. Most airports have websites with maps so you can easily find the customs desk.

I had the same problem in England with not spending enough in any one store to qualify for the rebate, so I don't think it's just a Canadian way to make it difficult to get your money back.

As I stood in line waiting for the person to stamp our slip arrive...I asked people which for they had.

Out of 6 people in line, not one had the official form. they all had the, more readily available, "for profit form". None of them realized that they would be giving up as much as 20% of their rebate.

Of course with the official form, Canadaian form you must supply your own envelope.

After I explained the difference, all but one person switched to the official form.

I wish to report that I recieved my refund check promptly in the mail. The system works as long you know the rules -- hence the reason for the initial posting.

I think some of the confusion I experienced in the Toronto airport was due to the fact that from Montreal, Quebec City to Toronto -- Air Canada hub, those routes use large planes. Our U S destinations -- Toronto to Detroit and Cleveland used much smaller prop planes -- and they use a different terminal for arrival and departures. $75 refund check I received was definately worth the extra effort.

I was told by canadian customs at Ottawa airport that lodging receipts also had to be stamped. It seems the rules change depending on who you talk to.

I did not have our lodging receipts stamped. However, I was concerned because one of the lodging places we stayed at gave us a 3" by 4" receipt simply stating 3 nights, amount paid, signed by the proprietor (this was in Neuville Quebec). It did not separately state the tax with which we are accustom to seeing on our receipts in the States. However, on an larger hotel near the Montreal airport, the tax was clearly stated on the bill.

Moral of this story,

If the tax is not separately stated, then you subconsiously think you are not paying it. It is a good method to avoid the gripes from both the local citizens and tourists alike. However, I prefer to have it broken out -- it would then be easier to see exactly how much my refund should be.

Lodging receipts do NOT have to be stamped, but they must show the tax amount. The only reason anything has to be stamped is to prove you took the items out of Canada--and, of course, you can't take your lodgings out of Canada. We just got our refund yesterday.

We just returned from Niagara Falls and found the whole GST refund to be a Canadian ploy to extort even more money from tourists. The only person we encountered in Canada who even mentioned the GST refund was our waitress at dinner one night. On our drive home, we stopped at the duty-free store right before the border to get our refund. The process took 45 minutes to an hour. There were no road signs telling you where to go, and I'm sure the vast majority of tourists leave Canada without getting their refund. I felt we'd paid sufficient taxes while in Canada to more than cover our visit. It was well worth waiting for our $60 refund, and I hope more visitors will go to the trouble to obtain their refunds in the future.