Residents in the Canary Islands, Ceuta and Melilla
We inform you how to recover the VAT paid for purchases you have made in the peninsula or the Balearic Islands.
VAT refund. Residents in the cities of Ceuta or Melilla
Upon arrival in Ceuta or Melilla, as soon as you disembark you must go to the tax receipt, which, after verifying your identity and the goods documented in the Electronic Refund Document (DER) or invoice DIVA , the date of entry of the goods into the City will be processed. Remember that, if more than 3 months have passed since you made the purchases, although the Tax Receipt can provide you with the date of entry into Ceuta or Melilla, it will not be able to process the refund.
Based on these documents, you must settle the IPSI corresponding to the purchases made. This procedure is carried out before the tax services of both Autonomous Cities, their responsibility being to establish the procedures, telematic or in-person, as well as to recognize, where appropriate, the right to any type of exemption or franchise.
The traveler must present to the Customs of Ceuta or Melilla the Electronic Refund Document (DER) or invoice DIVA completed by the tax receipt, as well as proof of the settlement of IPSI . Once all the documentation complies, Customs will proceed to the electronic visa of DER . You can present the documentation to Customs through the following channels:
- In person, for which it is advisable to book an appointment to avoid waiting
- Electronically through the electronic office
- Via email to the addresses: Ceuta: diva.ceuta@correo.aeat.es Melilla: diva.melilla@correo.aeat.es
The traveler will send the DER endorsed by Customs to the supplier, who will return the fee charged within the following fifteen days by check, bank transfer, credit card payment or other means. that allows the reimbursement to be accredited. Since the system is electronic, some providers directly process the return by verifying the Customs-compliant visa, others request that the traveler prove the Customs-compliant visa, sending the documentation via email, or by traditional correspondence.
The refund of the Tax may also be made through collaborating entities, authorized by the State Tax Administration Agency.
Travelers will present the electronic refund documents endorsed by Customs to these entities, which will pay the corresponding amount, stating the traveler's agreement.
No. The entire procedure is recorded electronically and it is an essential requirement that the operation be documented in an Electronic Reimbursement Document (DER) or invoice DIVA .
If you meet the rest of the requirements, and as long as you can prove the entry into Ceuta or Melilla of your purchases within 3 months following their purchase (you can request that your purchases be verified at the time of disembarkation), you can request the seller to issue the Electronic Refund Document (DER) afterwards.
No. The entire procedure is recorded electronically and it is an essential requirement that the operation be documented in an Electronic Reimbursement Document (DER) or invoice DIVA .
However, the sales establishment cannot deny your right to obtain a refund nor can it refuse to issue the DER . In this regard, the Binding Consultations of the General Directorate of Taxes V0564-20 and V1978-20
The seller must issue the corresponding invoice and an electronic refund document (ERD), available at the e-Office of the Tax Agency, in which the goods purchased and the corresponding tax must be stated separately.
Thus, the issuance of the electronic reimbursement document by the seller is not configured as an optional or discretionary circumstance for the seller but as an authentic legal obligation located at the same level as the obligation to issue an invoice.
The seller's refusal to issue the electronic reimbursement document, to which he is legally and regulatory obligated, could be considered a tax dispute so that the consultant could file the corresponding economic-administrative claim before the Economic Court. -Local Administrative Authority of Ceuta or Melilla, a body that does not depend on the AEAT .
Neither the VAT nor the IPSI regulations regulate this period. The traveler's request may imply the obligation of the seller to rectify the fees passed on, for which he has a maximum period of 4 years from the moment in which the Tax corresponding to the operation was accrued.
In accordance with the above, the traveler must send the invoice to the supplier before four years have elapsed from the accrual of the operation documented therein, so that said supplier can comply with the obligation to rectify the fees charged recorded therein. . After this period, the supplier will not be obliged to rectify said fees or return the amount thereof.
Therefore, the settlement of IPSI and the compliant visa from Customs must be made available to the seller within 4 years of the purchase (see consultation 0348-02 of the General Directorate of Taxes ).
Please note that, as the procedure is electronic, and with a maximum period of 3 months for purchases to arrive in Ceuta or Melilla, registering operations outside of this period requires manual actions that can lengthen the processing by several days.