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Tax Free in Romania - The expression of a civilized society Valentina Saygo, Business developer, Ask for Tax Free

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By Cristian Cojanu
We have put a lot of passion in the creation of the Tax Free project in Romania, which has been operational for three years. The idea behind it stemmed from my spirit of justice and determination to advocate buyer rights and to assist retailers in their effort to better serve their customers.
The availability of quality services is still low across the country, we do not have a culture for high-quality services, and we believe that foreign management models cannot work in the Balkan region. Sometimes it is enough for us to look across the border and understand that what we want for our customers is exactly what we want for ourselves when we are customers.      
Tax Free creates a framework of superior services in the retail businesses, especially for retailers selling goods that are to be taken outside the EU. Tax Free-authorized stores are able to offer full satisfaction to their foreign customers, providing all the necessary details so they can claim back VAT on their purchases.  
Romania’s Tax Free legislation has been in effect since 2004, but it has not been adequately enforced. Under the legislation, the state must provide the VAT refunds, but the entire process can be quite difficult. In this context, VAT-refund service Ask for Tax Free was created to identify the problems customers had to deal with and explain the procedures in guidebooks for foreign buyers. It paved the way for the authorization of retailers to join the Tax Free scheme, explaining the concept and its benefits to each retailer and store manager.      
Moreover, we have created partnerships with professional organizations, with an interest in the area of shopping in Romania. Our list of partner organizations includes the “Les Clefs d’Or” Concierge Association in four- and five-star hotels, professional associations of tourist guides, travel agents specializing in incoming tourism, rent-a-car companies, clubs, casinos and restaurants, ethnic communities and associations, foreign student associations, foreign chambers of commerce and expat groups. We are thus creating a community, whose individual entities represent links in the chain supporting both tourism and retail in Romania.          
I would like to point out that we do not offer our services exclusively to foreign tourists. Our services are available to expats working for foreign companies, foreign investors, Romanians holding dual citizenship, mixed families, people who are familiar with the Tax Free concept and use it to save up to 20 per cent off their purchases. They know their rights and we prove them that we respect their rights.    
We receive phone calls and e-mails from non-EU nationals, inquiring about where they can purchase various items tax free, and we provide the list of authorized retailers. Those retailers benefit from a competitive advantage over their rivals, as their presence on that list can bring them new customers and help them retain those who have already shopped with them. Statistics and experience have proved that 30 per cent of customers become regular ones, both for VAT refunds and purchases from authorized retailers, their names recurring at least three times in our books within a year.            
While at first glance Tax Free seems to be a perfect match for luxury shopping, I would like to point out that a large number of refunds are generated by big store chains specializing in toys, consumer products, furniture, home appliances, electronics, and IT, especially in towns along the borders with Serbia and the Republic of Moldova: Moravita, Sculeni, Albita and Jimbolia.

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