Vacancy -- Welsh Revenue Authority - Land Transaction Tax Specialist

Working for the Civil Service

The Welsh Government's recruitment processes are underpinned by the principle of selection for appointment on merit on the basis of fair and open competition as outlined in the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles.

The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

Vacancy Details

Welsh Government
Welsh Revenue Authority
HEO - £32,460 - £39,690
£29,100
Full time (applications are welcome from people who work part time, as part of a job share or who work full time)
Permanent
Other location
QED Centre, Treforest
To be confirmed

Purpose of Post:

The primary purpose of the role is to provide technical support on Land Transaction Tax (LTT) to customers and colleagues within the WRA.

The WRA Operational function encompasses all customer facing activity, from handling customer queries through to all types of compliance activities to enable customers to pay the right tax at the right time. 

The jobholder will

  • deal with day to day issues that may arise in respect of LTT and WRA’s services;
  • handle technical LTT queries from customers,
  • help in resolving customer complaints;
  • respond to tax opinion requests, and
  • undertake LTT compliance activities – including risk assessments and enquiries.

We are looking for someone who is passionate about assessing and resolving tax casework, and has the skills to be able to deal with a range of technical queries and compliance issues. These queries could arise by phone, e-mail or correspondence, so strong communications skills is key.

Key tasks:

Identify and Resolve Risks
Undertake risk assessment of LTT returns to identify potential risks;
Work with customers to try to understand the risks and reach resolution;
Carry out compliance checks, including formal enquiries to address risks where necessary.
Use investigation powers to establish facts and evidence as part of the compliance check;
Reach an acceptable resolution within the LTT legislation on compliance checks. Assessing the application of penalties where inaccuracies are established.  

Working with others
You will be expected to identify and highlight potential areas for improvements in processes or procedures with the Head of Customer Service;
Work with the LTT Technical lead to ensure that customer queries are resolved quickly and accurately;
Work with others across WRA to ensure you and the wider team understand developments in the business and LTT that may impact on the Customer Service team.

Developing yourself and the organisation
Become a specialist in LTT so you can assist colleagues with complex technical queries;
Act on feedback from customers, stakeholders and colleagues to make improvements to the service WRA provides to its customers, and the way it operates.
Provide assurance that Taxpayer information is handled confidentially, correctly and efficiently.
Achieve key performance standards and support colleagues to do the same.

Development opportunities:

This role will be at the heart of Tax Devolution in Wales. It is a critical role to ensure that the Tax is collected effectively and efficiently and customer’s queries are dealt with accurately.  The jobholder will also be one of the first compliance specialists within the WRA so will be able to help develop WRA’s approach to LTT compliance. They will have the opportunity to shape and develop the service which is being built.

As a new and small organisation, the post holder will also have the opportunity to work closely with other professionals across the organisation, including Finance, Strategy, Policy and IT functions to make improvements to Customer Service & Tax Compliance as the WRA grows. 

Closing Date:

08/03/2018, 10:45

Eligibility

Posts recruited to as part of this recruitment campaign are broadly open to UK nationals, those with right to remain and work in the UK and those that meet the Civil Service Nationality Rules only. Check your eligibility here:

Prior to appointment, all successful applicants will be required to produce original, acceptable documents as part of the pre-employment checks. If it becomes apparent at a later stage in the process that you aren’t eligible to apply, your application will be withdrawn, or offer retracted.

Equality and Diversity

The Welsh Government is committed to providing services which embrace diversity and which promote equality of opportunity. This is underpinned by the Equality Act 2010 and will be adhered to at each stage of the recruitment process. Our goal is to ensure that these commitments are also embedded in our day-to-day working practices with all our customers, colleagues and partners.

We are committed to being an anti-racist organisation and increasing diversity in the Welsh Government by removing barriers and supporting all our staff to reach their potential. We are committed to recruiting Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people and disabled people who are currently under-represented in Welsh Government.

We welcome applications from everyone regardless of age, marriage and civil partnership (both same sex and opposite sex), impairment or health condition, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, gender identity or gender expression.

We are a Stonewall Diversity Champion and a Disability Confident Level 3 (Leader) organisation. Key to supporting this work and providing peer support are five Board sponsored Staff Networks (Disability Awareness and Support (DAAS); Minority Ethnic Support Network (MESN); Mind Matters (Mental health and well-being); PRISM (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex +) and Women Together.

Disability Confident

A Great Place to Work for Veterans

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative.

Welsh Language Requirements

The Welsh Government is a bilingual organisation and Welsh language skills are considered an asset to the organisation. We encourage and support staff to learn, develop and use their Welsh language skills in the workplace. 

The following list of language requirements represents an objective assessment by the line manager on behalf of the Welsh Government of the Welsh language skills required to undertake the duties of this particular post.

Desirable
No skills
No skills
No skills
No skills

Social Partnership

In Welsh Government, the relationship between the employer and trade unions is based on social partnership. We believe our goals can best be achieved by management and trade unions working together.

Our 3 recognised trade unions are:
•         PCS
•         Prospect
•         FDA

This relationship is underpinned by a partnership agreement. This sets out how our unions work with Welsh Government on issues such as:
•         pay
•         terms and conditions
•         policies and procedures
•         organisational change.

Our Welsh Government trade union colleagues work together to give their members a real say in the workplace. They make sure that the interests of their members are promoted and protected. They also help reduce inequalities and improve terms and conditions.

The Welsh Government has an excellent track record of working in partnership with its trade unions. We encourage staff to get involved. We support you to join a recognised trade union, to ensure your voice is heard in the workplace. and to learn more about trade unions and partnership working.

Competencies / Job Specific Criteria

Setting Direction - Making Effective Decisions - 

Identify a broad range of relevant and credible information sources and recognise the need to collect new data when necessary from internal and external sources

Engaging People – Leading and Communicating -

Communicate in a straightforward, honest and engaging manner with all stakeholders and stand ground when needed

Engaging People - Building capability for all - 

Continually seek and act on feedback to evaluate and improve their own and team’s performance

Delivering Results – Delivering at Pace - 

Plan ahead but reassess workloads and priorities if situations change or people are facing conflicting demands


Job Specific Criteria 

Experience of handling tax queries or undertaking tax compliance (prior knowledge of SDLT would be beneficial, although not essential

Able to pick up a complex subject matter quickly and / or effectively communicate complex cases to an audience with little knowledge or understanding of the subject area

Ability to continually improve and develop business processes in a changing business environment

Assessment Process

Other Information

  • Unless stated otherwise in ‘actual starting salary’, all candidates will start at the minimum of the pay scale being appointed to (this includes existing civil servants).This is not negotiable.
  • Unless stated otherwise in ‘type of opportunity’, this recruitment advert is not open on a Loan or Secondment basis.
  • For more information on the eligibility criteria and terms and conditions for Loan and Secondment positions in Welsh Government, please see external recruitment candidate guidance.
  • Unless stated otherwise in ‘Location of Post’ the role/s recruited to via this campaign can only be worked in the UK, not overseas.

Terms of Appointment
The post is available on a permanent basis.

During the implementation stages of the Welsh Revenue Authority (WRA) the Welsh Government is recruiting to a number of posts on behalf of this new non ministerial department.
Whilst the Terms and Conditions of the Welsh Revenue Authority are still being confirmed, it is anticipated that they will follow those of the Welsh Government.

In accordance with part 2 of the Tax Collection and Management (Wales) Act 2016, all WRA staff are required to sign a Declaration of Confidentiality in relation to personal taxpayer information.

What we offer:

The WRA offers a variety of benefits, including:
• Chance to shape the beginnings of a new, bilingual organisation
• Support for improving or gaining Welsh language skills for all employees
• Frequent development discussions and the training you need for your role and to grow
• Annual pay increments, allowing you to progress to the top of your pay scale within 3-4 years
• 31 days annual leave, plus a day for Christmas and the Queen’s Birthday
• Generous parental leave, including 26 weeks at full pay for qualifying employees
• Generous pension scheme with employer contributions
• Childcare Vouchers Scheme, saving up to £933/year
• Cycle to Work Scheme: choose a brand new bike up to £1000, saving at least 32%
• Advances of Salary: request advances for Christmas, computer equipment or Tenancy Deposits
• Season Ticket Loans
• Flexitime policy
• Convenient location off the M4 with free, on site parking (available on a first come first served basis)

- An accountancy allowance may be payable to a suitable candidate.

For further information on the WRA and the two devolved taxes please visit the Welsh Revenue Authority website: https://beta.gov.wales/welsh-revenue-authority

Jenni Viggers

How to apply

All applications for this vacancy should be made online via the Welsh Government's online application system.  If you have a disability which would prevent you from applying on-line, please e-mail SharedServiceHelpdesk@gov.wales to request an application pack in an alternative format, or to request a reasonable adjustment related to a disability in order to submit your application.

To apply, you'll need to have an account on our online application system.  Click the 'Apply' button below, and you'll be asked to 'Log in' if you already have an account, or 'Register' if you don't yet have an account.  Registration takes just a few minutes to complete.  You'll need an e-mail address to be able to register.  Once you've registered for an account and logged in, you'll be taken to the online application form, which you'll need to fully complete and submit before the deadline on the closing date.  

If you’d like to apply for this vacancy in Welsh, please use the ‘Newid Iaith / Change Language’ link at the top of this page, to take you to the Welsh version of this advert, from which you can apply in Welsh.

For further information regarding the Welsh Government recruitment process, please see the Recruitment Guidance for External Candidates (link).

When evidencing your suitability for the post, it is recommended that you refer to the Civil Service Competency Framework (link)

Grievance and Complaints

Anyone who believes they have been treated unfairly, or has a grievance or complaint, about how the process was conducted should either write to the Head of Resourcing, Welsh Government, Cathays Park 2, Cardiff CF10 3NQ or email SharedServiceHelpdesk@gov.wales.  If you are unhappy with the outcome of the complaint raised with the Welsh Government and feel that the principles of appointment on merit through fair and open competition have not been met you have the right to pursue your grievance with the Civil Service Commission.

This vacancy is closed to applications.