New Welsh Revenue Authority to collect devolved taxes from 2018

A new body is being set up by Welsh ministers to collect taxes from 2018.

The Welsh government is taking over the setting and collection of landfill tax and a replacement for stamp duty, to be called the Welsh Land Transaction Tax.

The new tax collection body will be known as the Welsh Revenue Authority or WRA, Finance Minister Jane Hutt said.

Stamp duty raises around £168m a year in Wales with landfill tax raising £51m.

Ms Hutt said she wanted a "smooth transition to the new taxes in 2018, with as little disruption for taxpayers as possible".

"My priority is making sure Welsh taxes - which from 2018 will be a small but significant part of the overall funding available for public services in Wales - are collected safely and securely," she said.

"I also want arrangements that will enable taxpayers to comply with their obligations as straightforwardly as possible and these arrangements will need to be value for money."

The WRA will work with Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) to collect the property tax and with Natural Resources Wales to collect the landfill charges.