Louisiana Tax Free Shopping Program for International Visitors to end July 1

BATON ROUGE – The Louisiana Tax Free Shopping Program for International Visitors (LTFS) comes to an end on July 1, 2024. The program is ending under the provisions of Act 255 of the 2023 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature.

Established by state lawmakers in 1988, LTFS has provided sales tax refunds to international visitors on purchases from more than 900 participating retailers throughout the state. Over the program’s 36-year history, eligible shoppers could claim the refunds through the mail or at LTFS refund centers in Baton Rouge, Kenner, Lafayette, Metairie, New Orleans and Shreveport.

The program’s remaining refund centers, two in New Orleans and one in Kenner, will close to the public permanently on June 30, 2024.

Following the end of the program, international visitors will have one year, until June 30, 2025, to submit LTFS refund requests by mail for purchases made by June 30 of this year.