Guernsey Revenue debacle

I moved to Guernsey in November 2022.  In 2022, I spent fewer than 90 days (nights) in Guernsey, so was expecting to be non-resident for tax purposes for the year.  I was pleased to receive this confirmation, spontaneously, from the tax department, called "Revenue Service":

It states simply, albeit with a typo, that my ("[me]") "[..] residential status for tax purposes in [2022] will be 'non-resident'".

Imagine my surprise when I received an "Order Imposing a Penalty" dated 2024-03-04.  "In respect of the failure to deliver a return of income for the Year of Charge 2022 within the time specified by a notice given in accordance with the provisions of section 68 of the Law". 

Looking at the situation more carefully, it did seem possible that (leaving aside any issue of not having received a notice) one might be non-resident for tax purposes, but still required to submit a tax return, in a particular year.

On April 10th I asked this question to the Revenue Service:

Wed, Apr 10, 6:22 PM

From: Tom Jones <REMOVED@gmail.com>

To: revenueservice@gov.gg

Dear Revenue,

If my residential status for tax purposes in a year is "non resident",

can I still be required to submit a tax return?

  kind regards, Tom Jones.

As of June 5, I have not received a reply to this email.

Meanwhile, I asked for advice on the matter from my tax advisor at LTS.

They said don't pay it, and apparently asked Revenue something in the background, but as of June 4 I had not heard anything back.  Thus, I've had, as a background stress factor, the possibility hanging over me for 2 months of having failed to submit a tax return I was supposed to, and also failing to pay a fine that was due as a result.

I opened and read this when I was catching up on my post on June 4. Quasi-hilariously, it goes on, in its important way, "There is no right of appeal against this letter, except to the extent that you consider the amount of the above penalties has been miscalculated".  They are asking for 630 GBP so far.

I called Revenue and they said well you have to submit one, otherwise we won't know if you were resident or not.  I said I have a letter from Revenue confirming I'm not resident.  They said okay, appeal and include a copy of that letter in your appeal.  I said there is no right of appeal, except if I think the amount has been miscalculated.  They said yeah, appeal anyway.  How did I get here again, debating whether it is possible to appeal against an imagined something or other?  In Monaco, for example, does one have to spend one's days engaging in such Kafka-esque back and forth with the tax authorities, about whether or not their made up thing is appealable?

I contacted my tax advisor.  They said ignore it, it's okay, they've been in touch, it's all sorted.  The tax advisor had not copied me in, or kept me informed.  The tax advisor had been away on holiday, you see.  So.. I'm depending on one single individual for that, and when they're on holiday, the service fails?

Aside: note they're using the field "your ref", which is supposed to be mine.  They are, in other words, suffering from a your-my perspective schism.  When one swaps from receiving the letter to sending the letter, those fields also swap, just as when one person is speaking, the meanings of "my" or "our" and "your" are different from the meanings of the same words when another person is speaking.

Now, according to the principle of reciprocity, States of Guernsey Revenue Service now owes me 630 GBP.  They incorrectly claimed that I was obliged to pay them 630 GBP, so that is the amount that was at stake.  The penalty / compensation for incorrectly trying to take the 630 GBP is not zero, or a cancelling of the 630 GBP.  It is 630 GBP the other way.