The Corporate Services Scrutiny Panel is to review the planned changes to Jersey’s personal tax system, including the Government of Jersey’s efforts to equal taxation rights for married couples and couples in civil partnerships, and test their overall appropriateness and deliverability against their strategic priorities.
The proposition Personal Tax Reforms (P.119/2019) was lodged on 22nd November 2019. The proposition sets out the Government's tax reform plans for 2020, alongside indicative plans for the future. This includes the aim to give equal rights to taxpaying couples in Jersey. Under the current system, only the designated husband of a married couple or civil partnership is permitted to pay taxes, and the wife's income is considered to be the husband's.
Panel Chair, Senator Kristina Moore, commented:
"The Personal Tax Reforms proposed by the Government include a welcome commitment to ending the gender inequality in our system. However, it is crucial that these reforms do not negatively affect households in Jersey, and that the Government of Jersey have provided us with proposals that are both appropriate and deliverable for tackling the issues within our tax system."
To inform their work, the Panel intends to hold a public hearing with the Minister for Treasury & Resources and seek the views of Industry Experts to collect evidence and insights into these reforms.
The Panel will consider the disparities in the level of taxation presented to families under the different tax regimes proposed, the administrative effects of the Personal Tax Reforms on tax collection, and the fiscal soundness of the reforms and their potential impacts on revenue raising.
At the end of their Review, the Panel will publish a comments paper on its work, including any findings and recommendations for the Government to take into consideration as it embarks on this series of reforms.
Scrutiny News Release.