Shanghai issued the Implementation Plan for Further Optimizing Supply and Promoting Consumption Growth on April 19, 2019. The plan put forward a development strategy for the "tax-free and refund economy" which is becoming the booster of the Shopping in Shanghai brand.

Duty-free shops at airports, as the most familiar tax-free businesses, enjoyed a year of expansion in the city in 2019.

Shanghai has completed the expansion of Pudong Airport's T2 entry duty-free stores and the second phase construction of the exit duty-free stores in satellite terminals (S1 and S2), with an area of about 4,000 square meters.

With the acceleration of the construction of the Shanghai international shipping center and the rise of the cruise economy, the port's duty-free shops are flourishing.

During the second China International Import Expo (CIIE), the Shanghai Wusongkou Cruise Port duty-free shop was officially unveiled on Nov 9, covering 1,700 sq m, as part of the first batch of cruise port duty-free shops in China.

Shanghai, officially launched a tax refund policy for overseas tourists in 2015, as one of the first pilot cities in China.

There are now 428 shops in the city that can provide departure tax refunds. During the second CIIE, the sales volume of tax rebate items in Shanghai reached 5.6 million yuan ($806,475), up by 16.2 percent over the same period last year.

According to officials from Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, in 2020, in terms of the tax free economy, the commission will fully support major domestic tax-free enterprises such as China Duty Free Group Co Ltd and China National Service Corporation to select sites and carry out adjustments and transformation in Shanghai.

In terms of the tax refund economy, the commission will continue to strive for the liberalization of departure tax refund policies and promote the marketization of tax refund agent services.