Government measures in key jurisdictions 4th edition - Flipbook - Page 87
Jersey
Litigation
Are the courts
operating?
•
•
•
•
•
The Jersey courts have remained open and directions were made for civil cases during the COVID19 pandemic. The courts continued to hear cases but urgent / public law / family law cases took
precedence at the height of the pandemic.
Strict procedures were in place for essential hearings where attendants had to adhere to social
distancing guidance.
Jersey's Employment and Discrimination Tribunal resumed hearings in July 2020 and social
distancing measures have been put into place in the Tribunal hearing room. Where it is deemed
appropriate, for example in respect of case management hearings, the parties have been required
to attend by video or telephone conference.
The Royal Court has given directions on the remote execution of powers of attorney and affidavits.
The Royal Court has now resumed hearing all types of cases in person and social distancing is
being adhered to.
Tax
Deferral of payment of Social Security contributions:
•
Small businesses with less than 80 employees are automatically eligible to defer their payments
for two years for the first two quarters of 2020, which were due in April and July 2020.
Has any new
•
Businesses with 80 or more employees may apply to defer their payments and will need to show
legislation been
significant adverse impact on them as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
introduced in light of
Covid-19?
Deferral of payment of Goods and Service Tax:
•
GST payments for periods ending between 31 March and 30 June may be deferred for up to 12
months.
•
For individuals, in respect of residential tax status and days spent in Jersey, the Government
of Jersey has advised that the local tax authority will discount days spent in Jersey which are as
a result of exceptional circumstances related to Covid-19. This includes, for example,
where prohibition of travel orders have been made in response to the pandemic. See below
regarding economic substance.
87
Company
law matters
•
The Jersey Companies Registry is fully operational and continues to provide a full service. It is
demonstrating flexibility in its approach by accepting electronic signatures and the submission of
information electronically to assist users during the current situation.
Have any measures
been put in place to
accommodate social
distancing (such as
remote general
meetings)?
•
The Jersey Financial Services Commission has similarly demonstrated a flexible approach in
accepting electronic or scanned signatures with applications and filings to help overcome the
challenges caused by the travel and social distancing restrictions imposed by the coronavirus
pandemic.
•
Jersey’s Comptroller of Revenue has issued guidance to confirm that where companies’
operating practices have to be adjusted to compensate for the Covid-19 pandemic, the
Comptroller will not determine under Article 6 of the
Taxation (Companies – Economic Substance)(Jersey) Law 2019 that a company has failed the
economic substance test.
•
Mourant has produced a briefing regarding regulatory considerations for licensed financial
services businesses in the Channel Islands when responding to the Covid-19 outbreak.
•
Mourant has also considered the ways companies can overcome barriers to completing
transactions during the Covid-19 pandemic. All the most recent Mourant updates relating to Covid19 are available at Mourant Covid-19 Updates.
Government measures in key jurisdictions