Global Blue is a VAT/ Sales tax refunding company (I think a private company, but might be somehow funded by the EU as a QGO). When retail purchases of goods for export are made, a form is produced by the retailer, and this is then stamped by customs officers at the departure airport, when leaving the EU. Those stamped forms are then given to a separate clerk at a Global Blue office (also pre-security at the airport). A credit slip (like a credit card billing slip) is produced and indicates the refund amount.

All of this has worked for me before, and also worked well on my most recent trip to Berlin, Germany. The Global Blue people presumably profit on the difference between the full 20%+ VAT that is paid and refunded to them and the approximately 12-14% that is in turn refunded by Global Blue to the customer. I accept that markup as their cost of doing business. But something else happened this trip...

The Global Blue slip indicated a refund amount of 137 Euros. But my AMEX account (which took about a week to process the credit) is indicating an amount of $138 (should be over $150 at 1.1/1.0 USD rate to the Euro). I thought it might be DCC, but the slip clearly states the refund amount in Euros. And AMEX has no clue why it came through in a lower amount and in dollars. I've opened a case with AMEX, but credits are not handled like regular disputed charge transactions, rendering any resolution more complex.

Does anyone know what is going on with Global Blue? Are they secretly re-processing credits and taking out more $$$ ?