Tax-free shopping in the USA for international tourists is possible but limited: the country has no federal VAT and no national refund counter at the airport, so your options are to shop in one of the five states that charge no sales tax, use the private refund program in Texas, or claim Washington State’s point-of-sale exemption for non-residents. Everywhere else, the sales tax you pay at the register stays paid.
Sales tax in the U.S. is set by states and sometimes by cities or counties, with combined rates ranging from zero to over 9 percent. The sticker price almost never includes tax; the final amount is calculated at the register.
The Five States With No Sales Tax
The simplest way to shop tax-free is to buy in a state that doesn’t charge sales tax at all. Five qualify: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon.1Tax Foundation. State and Local Sales Tax Rates, 2026 No forms, no refund applications, no proof of foreign residency. The price on the shelf is the price you pay.
Alaska comes with a caveat. The state itself charges nothing, but more than a hundred local municipalities set their own sales taxes, with rates from 1 percent to 7 percent depending on the city or borough.2Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development. Alaska Tax Facts Anchorage has no local sales tax; Juneau and Kodiak do. The other four states are genuinely tax-free across the board.
The Texas Sales Tax Refund Program
Texas is the most accessible state for a true tourist refund. Private refund companies operate centers, primarily at malls in Houston and San Antonio, where foreign visitors can reclaim the state sales tax paid on merchandise bought within 30 days of departure from the country. Texas does not run the program itself. The legal basis is the state’s export exemption under Tax Code Section 151.307, which treats goods removed from the country as exempt from tax.3State of Texas. Texas Code TAX 151.307 – Exemptions Required by Prevailing Law
To qualify, you need a foreign passport, proof of onward travel such as a boarding pass or flight itinerary, and original receipts showing the sales tax paid. The merchandise must be new and unused. Refund companies deduct a processing fee, and some set a minimum sales tax amount per store before they’ll process the claim. The experience is closer to visiting a customer service desk at a shopping center than clearing customs.
The statute focuses on proving export, and acceptable documentation includes a bill of lading from a licensed carrier, certification from a U.S. Customs Broker, or import documents from the destination country.3State of Texas. Texas Code TAX 151.307 – Exemptions Required by Prevailing Law For individual tourists, the private refund companies handle most of that paperwork.
Washington State’s Non-Resident Exemption
Washington takes a different route. Instead of a refund after the fact, the state exempts certain purchases at the point of sale for non-residents who will take the goods out of Washington. The exemption covers tangible personal property and digital goods. You’ll need identification showing you live outside Washington and that the items won’t be used in the state. This matters most for large purchases near the Oregon border or a short visit to Seattle, less so for casual shopping.
Louisiana’s Program Is Closed
Older travel guides describe Louisiana’s Tax Free Shopping (LTFS) program as a leading option for international visitors. That program no longer exists. Under Act 255 of the 2023 legislative session, LTFS ended on July 1, 2024, and its refund centers in New Orleans and Kenner closed permanently on June 30, 2024.4Louisiana Department of Revenue. Louisiana Tax Free Shopping Program for International Visitors to End July 1 The mail-in deadline for final refund requests passed on June 30, 2025. International visitors shopping in Louisiana now pay the same sales tax as everyone else, with no way to recover it.
What Qualifies and What Does Not
Even where refund programs are active, the rules are strict. Only physical goods that you carry out of the country are eligible. The exemption exists because the merchandise is being exported, so anything you consume domestically is out.
Items that typically don’t qualify:
- Restaurant meals and food consumed in-state, because they’re used up before you leave.
- Hotel rooms. Lodging taxes are separate from sales tax and are never refundable to tourists.
- Services such as haircuts, spa treatments, and guided tours, which aren’t tangible property.
- Used merchandise. If you wear the clothes or open the electronics before leaving, the goods may no longer qualify.
Eligible items are generally new, unused goods: clothing, electronics, jewelry, cosmetics, and similar retail merchandise you carry with you when you depart.
Documents to Keep From Your First Purchase
If you plan to claim a refund in Texas or an exemption in Washington, start collecting paperwork from day one. Processors need to verify three things: that you’re a foreign visitor, that you paid sales tax, and that you’re leaving with the goods.
Keep your original paper receipts for every purchase. Digital copies and credit card statements are routinely rejected. Each receipt should show the date, the store name, and the sales tax charged as a separate line item. If the receipt doesn’t break out the tax, ask the cashier for an itemized version.
Your foreign passport is the primary identification document. Refund processors also want proof of departure, so hold onto a confirmed flight itinerary or printed boarding pass. An I-94 arrival/departure record can help verify your legal entry and the dates of your visit; you can look up and print your most recent I-94 on the CBP website.5U.S. Customs and Border Protection. I-94/I-95 Website The printed form is your official record of lawful admission to the country.6USAGov. Form I-94 Arrival-Departure Record for U.S. Visitors
Taxes You Cannot Recover
Most taxes international visitors pay in the U.S. simply aren’t refundable, and this surprises travelers used to European VAT counters. Hotel occupancy taxes, which typically add 6 to 16 percent on top of the room rate in major tourist cities, are levied by states and municipalities and have no tourist exemption. Car rental taxes and airport surcharges often push the total tax on a rental to between 10 and 27 percent of the base rate. Restaurant meals are taxed at the local sales tax rate, and that tax stays paid.
Sales tax on retail purchases in the other 40-plus states that charge it is also final. Outside of the Texas refund program and Washington’s point-of-sale exemption, there is no way to recover sales tax paid in the United States. If avoiding sales tax matters, plan major shopping around the five no-tax states or use airport duty-free shops on your way out.
Duty-Free Shops at U.S. Airports
Duty-free stores at U.S. international airports sell goods with neither federal duty nor federal tax applied, but only because the merchandise is being exported.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1555 – Bonded Warehouses Under federal law, airport duty-free shops must deliver merchandise in areas restricted to departing international passengers: past the security checkpoint at the gate, at the exit point of your specific flight, or placed directly on the aircraft. The store can’t hand you a bag at the terminal entrance and call it an export.
These shops are required to post notices warning that any duty-free goods brought back into the U.S. must be declared and will be subject to federal duty and tax, and that the goods are also subject to the customs rules of your destination country.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 19 USC 1555 – Bonded Warehouses The savings depend partly on what your home country charges on arrival. A bottle of whiskey that skipped U.S. tax may still get taxed at your destination if it exceeds your personal allowance.