Jersey ministers rule out Guernsey-style tax review

Jersey's Treasury Minister Elaine Millar said "no consideration" had been given to introducing a standard corporation tax in the island.

Currently the standard rate of company tax in Jersey is 0%, while finance firms pay 10% under a system known as "Zero/10".

It follows a written question from Deputy Max Andrews asking if the treasury had considered adopting a standard rate of corporate tax and if there were concerns about the current system.

Andrews' question came as officials in Guernsey review how much tax the island receives from businesses.

Jersey last made changes to its corporation tax regime in 2024 when it introduced a 15% tax for companies with global annual revenue of 750 million euros (£624m) or more.

Andrews asked Millar if the treasury had any concerns around the reliance on Zero/10 in relation to personal income tax.

Millar said Jersey must uphold Zero/10, describing it as a "core strength" and a "key driver" of the island's "prominence as a globally leading International Finance Centre".

"Jersey has a broad-based tax regime including GST and we are forecast to raise £185m from corporate income tax in 2026," Millar said.

"Furthermore, financial services companies are estimated to pay over half of overall tax revenues, including personal income tax from employees in finance."

She added: "In order to maintain and grow our tax base, including personal income taxes, for the benefit of all Islanders, it is essential that we preserve our zero/ten regime and our international tax competitiveness."

The written questions from Andrews were submitted as politicians in Guernsey review their own zero/ten system.

The island's tax review sub-committee is due to submit full proposals for tax reform before the end of June, including corporate tax and whether to introduce a goods and services tax.

Andrews asked Millar if she had been in discussion with other Crown Dependencies on future corporation tax regimes.

Millar said "no discussions or communications" with her counterparts in Guernsey had taken place about changing Jersey's Zero/10 regime.

Chief Minister Lyndon Farnham said the government were keeping a "close eye" on developments in Guernsey but have "no plans to review the islands tax position".

"We are having to watch things very closely because we've seen inflation and we've had to curb the growth in the public service but we've got no plans to review things at this stage," he said.

Follow BBC Guernsey on X and Facebook. Follow BBC Jersey on X and Facebook. Send your story ideas to channel.islands@bbc.co.uk.