Failed sushi restaurant owes £60,000 in unpaid taxes

Tuesday 19 July 2022

A St. Aubin-based steak and sushi restaurant which recently closed after less than two years of trading owes the Government more than £60,000 in unpaid taxes.

In a recent Royal Court judgment, Shinzo Jersey Ltd was ordered to pay the States of Jersey £63,058.78 in ITIS contributions for 2020-22.

The restaurant owes £2,303.80 for 2020, the year it opened; £33,922.74 for last year; and £26,834.24 for this year. 

The company was not represented when the case was heard earlier this month, despite a summons being sent to the St. Brelade address.

Shinzo first opened in August 2020 but shut it doors last month with its owners, Gavin and Lisa Roberts, citing the pandemic and the lack of financial support as reasons for the unexpected closure.

Since then, former employees have won claims for unpaid wages and the Government has denied that it owned the restaurant £85,000 in unpaid covid support. 

In May, Director General of Customer and Local Services Ian Burns, whose department was responsible for administering covid funding, said Shinzo received almost £230,000 via the Co-funded Payroll Scheme.

At the same time, Mr Roberts told Express that he was looking forward to revealing his next project to islanders.