Chamber warns about GST deadline

Some Jersey businesses may not be ready to hand in their first Goods and Sales Tax (GST) returns, the island's Chamber of Commerce has warned.

Chamber president Clive Spears said some companies had had problems preparing for the 1 August deadline.

He said the chamber had organised a meeting with tax officials in the next few weeks to sort out what were described as "teething problems".

GST was introduced in May, adding 3% to all prices in Jersey.

Corporation tax

Traders warned before the tax was introduced that it would cause them trouble and expense to collect the revenue.

They have to send details of how much they have collected, with the money, to the tax office every quarter.

Clive Spears said many businesses had trouble getting ready for that especially after the States' GST website went down.

GST was introduced because the government will be receiving less tax from the finance industry after it introduced a zero-rate corporation tax to keep it competitive.