Hong Kong Air Passenger Departure
Tax Refund

Eligible passengers can submit their refund application on their departure day after entering the airport restricted area and passing through Immigration. Passengers must submit their applications within 28 days from the departure day.

The eligibility of passengers arriving in Hong Kong by aircraft and departing by aircraft (air-to-air transfer passengers) within two calendar days will not be affected by their entry and exit records via land or sea control points during this period.

For passengers arriving in Hong Kong by land or sea and departing by aircraft (intermodal transfer passengers) within two calendar days, if they have left Hong Kong by land or sea on the day or the preceding day of their departure flights, they will not be eligible for APDT refund.

Passengers who bought two one-way tickets for entering and departing from Hong Kong by air within two calendar days of arrival are eligible for APDT refund if they have paid the APDT at the time of purchasing the tickets.

However, depending on the system of the airlines, passengers who buy direct transfer or connecting tickets will be automatically exempted from APDT at the time of payment. These passengers will not have to apply for a refund.

Air-to-air transfer passengers are required to provide the following documents for verification:

• Travel document for departing Hong Kong;
• Boarding pass of arrival flight;
• Boarding pass of departure flight; and
• Proof of tax payment.

Intermodal transfer passengers are required to provide the following documents for verification:

• Travel document for entry to Hong Kong;
• Boarding pass of departure flight; and
• Proof of tax payment.

Accepted file formats include PDF, and image files such as JPG, JPEG and PNG. Each file must not exceed 7MB in size.

Passengers are required to pay the APDT in full when purchasing air tickets from airlines or travel agents. Receipts, itinerary or air ticket will be issued by airlines or travel agents showing the amount of APDT paid. If you do not have such proof, please contact your airlines or travel agents for assistance.

Passengers who have lost their proof of tax payment should contact their airlines or travel agents to request reissuance of the required documents.

A separate refund application must be submitted for each individual trip along with the relevant supporting documents. While awaiting the outcome of the previous application, you may continue to submit applications for other journeys.

Eligible passengers must submit their own applications via the Refund Application Platform, with the exception for minors.

The refund amount is based on the APDT paid when purchasing air tickets. For tickets purchased on or before 30 September 2025, the APDT amount is HK$120 per passenger. For tickets purchased on or after 1 October 2025, the APDT amount is HK$200 per passenger.

Eligible passengers can choose to receive their APDT refund via one of the following methods: cash, Credit card / Debit card (Visa / Mastercard / American Express), Alipay, or WeChat pay.

Cash refunds will be issued exclusively in Hong Kong Dollars.
For other payment methods, the refund will be processed in the currency originally used by the passenger on the selected platform. Passengers are advised to check with their service provider in advance for details.

For cash refunds, no handling fees will be charged.

For other payment methods, passengers will be responsible for handling fees charged by Credit card / Debit card and electronic payment companies. The handling fees vary depending on the specific electronic payment company.

Eligible passengers who initially selected cash as their APDT refund method may switch to an e-payment option before obtaining the cash refund.

However, passengers who have selected an e-payment option will not be able to change their chosen refund method, as the data has been provided to respective e-payment platforms. Passengers are therefore reminded to confirm their refund method before submitting the application.

The processing of an APDT refund application will be normally completed within 3 weeks upon submission of application and supporting documents.

Passengers will receive a reference number upon submission of the application via the Refund Application Platform. This reference number can be used to check the refund status on the same platform so please keep it properly.

If required, passengers need to provide email address for receiving the notification of application result.

To check the application status, please click “Check Application Status” on the main page of the Refund Application Platform, then enter your reference number.

You can retrieve your reference number from the Refund Application Platform by providing your date of birth, travel documents, flight number and flight date.

You can retain the generated, unused QR code and collect your refund within 180 days at any of the designated money exchange outlets at the Hong Kong International Airport.

Passengers may also consider logging in the Refund Application Platform with the reference number and changing to e-payment method.

Effective 1 October 2025, refund in cash at the Civil Aviation Department's Air Passenger Departure Tax Refund Counter located at Aisle D, Level 7, Departure Hall of the Hong Kong International Airport will no longer be available. Eligible passengers must submit their refund applications via the Refund Application Platform.

If the passenger's application falls within the 28-day submission period and no refund request has been submitted to the Civil Aviation Department for the same journey, they can apply for a refund via the Refund Application Platform, even if the flight occurred on or before 30 September 2025.

For refund applications submitted on or before 30 September 2025, please contact the Civil Aviation Department at apdt@cad.gov.hk directly.

Passengers who arrive at the HKIA by SkyPier Terminal cross boundary ferry / coach for onward departure by air should collect refund at the “Departure Tax Refund Desk” at the SkyPier Terminal. This Refund Application Platform is not applicable to such passengers.

For details, please refer to the HKIA Website at:
https://www.hongkongairport.com/en/transport/mainland-connection/transfer-coach-service.page#5

If you need any assistance, please contact us via email at APDTRefund@hkairport.com.