Hainan’s outlying island tax exemption policy has been implemented since 2011, and has undergone six adjustments. The most intense adjustment is on July 1 this year. The new Hainan outlying island tax exemption policy has increased the annual tax-free shopping limit for outlying island tourists to 100,000 yuan per person. , Duty-free products are newly added to categories such as alcohol and electronic products, and there is no limit to the number of purchases of a variety of duty-free products.
Statistics show that in July this year, the four outlying island duty-free shops in Hainan Province achieved a total tax-free sales of approximately 2.49 billion yuan, and per capita consumption was 6,483 yuan, an increase of 230% and 110% respectively over the same period last year.
Hainan outlying islands increase in duty-free quota and varieties
I can’t stop buying, buying and buying!
Located in Haitang Bay International Duty Free City in Sanya City, Hainan Province, there are more than 350 popular international brands of cosmetics, bags, jewelry, clothes, shoes and hats, and electronic products. In early August, when a reporter from "Economy Half an Hour" of CCTV Finance came to Haitang Bay Duty Free City, there was a hot and busy scene, and many shops lined up at the door.
Haitang Bay International Duty Free City, Sanya City, Hainan Province
Wang Ying is a salesperson of a cosmetics shop. She has been working here for 3 years. Cosmetics has always been a hot-selling category in duty-free cities. Wang Ying told reporters that since July, tourists have come to buy duty-free goods every day. Absolutely.
Starting from July 1, Hainan’s duty-free shopping quota has been increased from 30,000 yuan per person per year to 100,000 yuan. The number of cosmetics has also been increased from 12 pieces per person each time off the island to 30 pieces. Moreover, the price is equivalent to 30% off the normal market, which is even 10%-20% lower than the average selling price in traditional popular markets such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore. Statistics show that since July, among all duty-free products, cosmetics have been the double champion in sales volume and sales amount.
Wang Tingting, a brand cosmetics salesperson
The electronic life hall is located on the second floor of the mall. It mainly deals with electronic equipment such as mobile phones, earphones, and stereos. Electronic products are newly added duty-free products since the implementation of the new tax-free policy on outlying islands on July 1. A mobile phone can be discounted up to more than two thousand yuan. As soon as electronic duty-free products were launched, they were welcomed by consumers.
Electronic Life Hall
Since the implementation of the duty-free policy on Hainan Islands, the types of duty-free products have been increasing. From the 18 categories of products limited in 2011 to 38 categories in 2015, this time it was expanded to 45 categories. At the same time, the 8,000 yuan tax-free limit for a single product was cancelled. , The category has increased, the quota has been liberalized, and the enthusiasm of consumers has increased.
Gao Xujiang, Managing Director of CDFG Sanya Duty Free Shop Co., Ltd.
Behind the hot sales, the regulatory authorities are also busier than ever. Liu Chun is a manager of the Sanya Customs Outlying Islands Duty Free Supervision Section. He and his colleagues go to various stores in the mall every day to check the list of gifts and the inventory of duty-free goods repeatedly to prevent counterfeit and shoddy goods from being mixed with genuine products for sale.
Store inspection
Not only that, they will also call surveillance videos of the duty-free city for spot checks at any time. The warehouse in the Duty Free City is also the focus of inspection by Liu Chun and his colleagues.
Verification data
At Sanya Phoenix Airport, the two duty-free pick-up points here are already full of tourists waiting to pick up the goods. The 18 windows of the old pick-up points here can no longer meet the demand. A total of 20 new duty-free pick-up points were newly built on July 10. The windows are now all open for use. 135 cameras cover the entire isolation area to prevent violations.
Chen Dahong, Customs Officer of the Second Division of Duty Free Supervision, Outlying Islands, Sanya Customs
At present, travelers coming to Hainan can not only buy duty-free goods at Haitang Bay International Duty Free City in Sanya, but also at three duty-free shops at Qionghai Boao Dongyu Island Duty Free Shop, Haikou Meilan Airport Duty Free Shop, and Riyue Square Duty Free Shop. To duty-free goods.
Statistics show that in July, the sales of the four duty-free shops all doubled. There were 12,000 daily shopping visitors, an increase of 54.1% year-on-year; daily shopping volume was 80.24 million yuan, an increase of 2.3 times. Among the many hot-selling products, the sales amount of cosmetics, jewelry, and watches ranked the top three; it is worth noting that after the removal of the 8,000 yuan tax exemption limit for a single product, the sales of products with a unit price of more than 8,000 yuan have increased significantly. In July, the sales amount of goods with a unit price of more than 8,000 yuan was 650 million yuan, and the sales volume was 34,000 pieces, which were 4.5 times and 3.3 times the same period last year. Among them, the highest price of a single piece of goods sold exceeded 470,000 yuan.
Huang Tingting, Director of Port Supervision Office, Haikou Customs
Peek-a-boo, hide-and-seek, tax-free boom spreads
How does the regulatory authority carry out precise strikes?
The new policy has ignited the upsurge of duty-free shopping on Hainan’s outlying islands and has also promoted the return of overseas consumption. But at the same time, the profits of duty-free goods have also given many people a so-called "business opportunity." These arbitrage groups use other people’s off-island duty-free quotas to organize the purchase of off-island duty-free goods for illegal benefits.
Haikou New Sea Port Terminal
Xiao Zhao is a native of Hainan and has just graduated from university. At the end of July, Xiao Zhao accidentally learned in a chat group that he could make hundreds of yuan in one trip to help people buy duty-free goods from Hainan duty-free shops and take them out of Hainan. According to the instructions, Xiao Zhao received the order to bring the goods in the early morning of August 7. According to the instructions, Xiao Zhao used his ID card to checkout at the Boao Duty Free Shop, and then took a boat from Xinhai Port in Haikou City to Zhanjiang City, Guangdong Province on the other side. After someone received the goods, he could get 380 yuan. At 2 pm on August 8, Xiao Zhao was detained by the customs anti-smuggling police before boarding the ship.
The customs anti-smuggling police arrested Xiao Zhao
Xiao Zhao is not the only one arrested. Many of the people carrying the goods among the passengers from the outlying islands were screened out one by one by the customs anti-smuggling police.
The scene of arresting people carrying goods
Xinhaigang Wharf is just one of the locations to be investigated. On August 8, under the unified command of the Anti-smuggling Bureau of the General Administration of Customs and the Hainan Provincial Public Security Department, the Haikou Customs Anti-smuggling Bureau, in conjunction with the local public security department, launched the fourth round of special operations against illegal and illegal tax-free arbitrage purchases on outlying islands.
In four rounds of crackdowns, 22 gangs were destroyed, more than 240 people were arrested, 65 people were taken compulsory measures, and thousands of cosmetics, bags, and accessories were seized on the spot.
Seizure scene
The reporter discovered at the law enforcement site that the seized commodities were mainly cosmetics and perfumes, and the 30% price difference made some people take risks. However, the reporter also found that for every 10,000 yuan of goods brought by the cargo personnel, they can only get about 200 yuan for the purchasing fee, and most of the illegal benefits fall into the pockets of the cargo owner and the purchasing organizer.
Guo Jianmeng, Section Chief, Outlying Islands Duty Free and Express Mail Management Section, Haikou Customs Supervision Office
In order to provide passengers with a better duty-free shopping experience and to strengthen positive supervision, the customs has decided to take the lead in piloting a facial recognition system at the Haikou New Sea Port before the end of August during the pick-up process on outlying islands.
Install face recognition system at pick-up point
On July 10, the Hainan Provincial Department of Finance, the Department of Commerce, and the Market Supervision Bureau announced that in accordance with the principles of operating brands, varieties, prices, and international three synchronizations, they will adopt market-oriented competition methods such as bidding, and will determine the newly added Hainan outlying island duty-free shopping Operating subject. This means that the duty-free shops on Hainan Island will soon have different competitors.
Xie Zhiyong, General Manager of CDF Hainan Duty Free Co., Ltd.
At present, 10 listed companies have announced that they have submitted applications for the qualification of duty-free products, and a number of licensed duty-free companies are also in contact with Hainan.
Ao Biqiang, Deputy Commissioner of Haikou Customs
[Half an hour observation]
Polish the "golden sign" of the tax-free economy
After the adjustment of Hainan's duty-free shopping policy on outlying islands, it has given unprecedented vitality. The duty-free policy on outlying islands is becoming a beautiful tourist business card for the construction of Hainan Free Trade Port. Next, if "Hainangou" can provide enough and sufficient preferential duty-free goods, world-class shopping experience and services, then the transition from "overseas purchase" to "Hainanbuy" will be just around the corner. But at the same time we have also noticed that since the implementation of the New Deal, some attempts to make use of the tax-free shopping policy on outlying islands for illegal profit are being curbed. Only by strengthening the supervision of tax-free shopping can good policies be implemented healthily and effectively. We hope that in the future, the tax-free economy can truly become the "golden sign" of Hainan.