Completing Your Arriving in Guernsey Form
The Tax Office for the States of Guernsey is known as then Revenue Service. Find out what your responsibilities are to them here…
All new people arriving in Guernsey need to complete what’s handily known as a “New Arrivals” form to register their details with the Revenue Service.
This is super easy and done online or with a paper form. I’ve put copies of the paper form below so you can see the information you’ll need to know to provide:
Based on this info the Revenue Service will provide you with your unique Tax Reference Number (like a Tax File Number in Australia) and provide your employer with a Tax Coding Notice, or a code that lets them know how much tax to deduct each pay from your wages.
Your Guernsey based income is “taxed at source” meaning you will automatically Pay As You Earn (PAYE) or Pay As You Go to the tax office.
However, unlike the HMRC’s automatic PAYE system, the Revenue Service will not automatically calculate your tax return so nearly everyone will need to complete an annual Income Tax Return Form at the end of each financial year (i.e. 31st December).
Because of how important your day count on the island is, it’s important to get these details correct and to keep evidence of the dates you arrive and leave the island (plane tickets should do the trick). 90 days is counted as 90 midnights in the Bailiwick (for Guernsey that includes Alderney, Herm and Sark as well), so make sure you count them up accurately and depart on the right date!
Every time you leave the island you will need to inform the Revenue Service of your departure with the Leaving Guernsey Form (unless you’ve just left briefly for a holiday for example). And each time you return to or re-enter the Bailiwick you will need to complete your Arriving in Guernsey form again.
Tedious I know, but it provides a simple way for the Tax Office to keep track of your day count, and therefore your residency status for tax purposes – it’s definitely worth your while!