Additional Support for PYB taxpayers

Revenue Jersey is launching new tools to help Prior Year Basis (PYB) prepare for the switch to paying their tax on a Current Year Basis (CYB).

Following a vote by the States Assembly on 4 November, all taxpayers will pay their tax on a CYB basis from 2020. This means that all the payments that PYB and ‘pay on account’ taxpayers have made in 2020 to pay their 2019 tax bill will instead be used to pay their 2020 tax bill, and they will have their 2019 tax bill ‘frozen,’ for payment at a later date.

Regulations for payment of the bill are due to be debated early next year and will include a payment plan that could spread the bill over up to 20 years. PYB taxpayers can now to use a new online calculator to find out how much it may cost them to pay their 2019 tax bill, over different time periods.

The online calculator asks users to enter their outstanding 2019 tax bill, how long they intend to make payments for, and whether they would like to make any lump sum payments. It will then give them a monthly, quarterly, half yearly, or annual payment figure. 

A few customers may not yet have their 2019 bill, but there are fewer than 2,000 returns remaining to be assessed and those customers should receive their assessment very soon.

PYB taxpayers who want to find out more about the process of moving to CYB can also watch a new animated video, which is being shared on social media and on the Government of Jersey website. It explains in plain English what the changes are, and the four-step process to gaining certainty about their 2020 tax bill. 

Comptroller of Revenue, Richard Summersgill, said: “Prior Year Basis taxpayers were clear in the feedback they provided that they wanted certainty as to their 2020 tax position.

“These new resources help to explain the changes Revenue Jersey is making; giving customers more certainty about what the changes mean for them, and highlighting their role in the four-step process, which is to file their 2020 tax return. 

“The simple message is that as with every year, we can only confirm what tax people owe and whether the payments moved to their 2020 tax liability will cover it, when they have submitted their tax return. If they are keen to know if they owe anything, then filing early and online if possible, will allow us to confirm their tax position more quickly.” 

More information is available on the Government of Jersey website.