2019 Deferred Income Tax payment arrangements (FOI)

Request

I believe that there is a year where the pubic had the tax “suspended” pending further payment.

A

I am not sure which year this is so please could you tell me if new legislation has been, or is about to be passed where certain groups of the public, for example, pensioners or those about to retire can be asked to pay it all at once? Please explain in full.

B

Also, for those who have died during this debt, have their estates been made to pay the outstanding amount or has this been written off? Please supply statistics.

C

For those who have left Jersey, have those persons been made to pay at once or have they been allowed to travel out of legal recourse without settling the debt?

D

Has there been an additional administrative cost for enforcing this?

​Response

A to C 

The requested information is contained in the guidance notes for the payment of the deferred 2019 income tax liability and is available on www.gov.je. Article 23 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law has therefore been applied. Please see the link below:

Payment of the deferred 2019 income tax liability guidance notes (gov.je)​

Following a death, any outstanding tax becomes due and payable before the estate can be distributed. This includes any deferred 2019 liability. In any case in which an estate is insolvent and cannot settle the outstanding tax liability, it may be written off. Statistical information as to the number of insolvent estates that have had 2019 deferred liability written off is not held. Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 applies.

D

The collection of deferred 2019 liabilities is undertaken alongside the collection of all other tax types. It is not possible to isolate administrative costs associated solely with the deferred liabilities. Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law applies.

Articles applied

Article 3 - Meaning of “information held by a public authority”

For the purposes of this Law, information is held by a public authority if –

(a)     it is held by the authority, otherwise than on behalf of another person; or

(b)     it is held by another person on behalf of the authority.

Article 23 - Information accessible to applicant by other means

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it is reasonably available to the applicant, otherwise than under this Law, whether or not free of charge.

(2) A scheduled public authority that refuses an application for information on this ground must make reasonable efforts to inform the applicant where the applicant may obtain the information.