The Jersey Government has launched a service to enable people to file their income tax returns online.
It uses the island’s one.gov account and the Yoti digital identity with the relevant online form that comes with guidance on completing it successfully.
The Government said the form includes a function in which answers will automatically eliminate the subsequent sections that do not apply to the individual.
Treasury Minister, Deputy Susie Pinel, said: “This is a significant move towards the Government modernising its services to be more accessible for Islanders. It is the first step in the journey towards a fully digital online service for personal income tax.
“However, completing your tax return online is an option and taxpayers can still complete a paper form if they prefer.”
Marcus Ferbrache, formerly the web services manager for the Jersey Government, posted on LinkedIn that this is the online service that has been most widely requested by the public on the island. It is based on the foundation components of the eGov programme, with the digital identity, customer portal, people directory and integration layer.
Increasing use
Robin Tombs, chief executive officer of Yoti, said it is a step towards the wider use of the digital identity app for public services on the island. It is currently used widely for younger people to prove their age.
Last year Scotland’s Improvement Service for local government made it possible for people to use the app for verification with its myaccount service.
The Jersey Government has portrayed the move as a step towards eliminating a backlog tax return assessments, and has given people completing their 2019 returns an extra two months, up to 31 July this year, to complete returns for 2019.
It is also running drop-in workshops for people to learn how to complete the online process.
Image: Man vyi - own work, public domain through Wikimedia
