08.05.2024 | 14:37

Spain is a tax-free shopping destination for British tourists

29 November, 2023

During the World Travel Market (WTM) fair event in London, the Spanish Tourism Institute (Turespaña) launched an advertising campaign in the United Kingdom to position Spain as a shopping destination and reminding residents of the islands that, since leaving the European Union, they can recover VAT on purchases made during their holidays in Spain.

The British who visited Spain in 2022 spent more than 715 million euros on tax-free purchases and in 2023, up to the month of September, the amount paid by British tourists on purchases at their destination has already reached 646 million euros.

© Pexels

This campaign aims to increase this volume of purchases and contribute to the increase in average spending per British tourist. Given the volume of British tourism in Spain, the number one source market for Spain, with 20.68% of the total number of international visitors from January to September this year, an increase in shopping by British tourists would lead to an improvement in the figures for tourist spending in Spain.