Tax Residency
ANZ Bank
Overview
The Tax Residency feature is a digital-first, integrated self-service tool that allows ANZ customers to submit their tax residency information via the ANZ App and Internet Banking. Customers can self-service and maintain their tax residency status, eliminating the need for manual forms or in-branch visits.
This feature helps ANZ to ensure compliance with AEOI regulations and meets both Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and Common Reporting Standards (CRS) obligations.
The Tax Residency feature is a digital-first, integrated self-service tool that allows ANZ customers to submit their tax residency information via the ANZ App and Internet Banking. Customers can self-service and maintain their tax residency status, eliminating the need for manual forms or in-branch visits.
This feature helps ANZ to ensure compliance with AEOI regulations and meets both Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and Common Reporting Standards (CRS) obligations.
Problem Statement
ANZ needed to migrate a manual, paper-based tax residency process into a digital solution. The existing approach relied on forms, phone calls, and branch visits, which were slow, inefficient, and created friction for customers. At the same time, the solution needed to ensure compliance.
The Goal
Enable customers to self-service their tax residency status digitally through the ANZ App or Internet Banking, eliminating manual process — while meeting all regulatory obligations.
ANZ needed to migrate a manual, paper-based tax residency process into a digital solution. The existing approach relied on forms, phone calls, and branch visits, which were slow, inefficient, and created friction for customers. At the same time, the solution needed to ensure compliance.
The Goal
Enable customers to self-service their tax residency status digitally through the ANZ App or Internet Banking, eliminating manual process — while meeting all regulatory obligations.
The Customer Hub
The Customer Hub / Profile & Security is the authenticated section of the ANZ App and Internet Banking. It was selected as the most appropriate place for this feature, as it is where customers manage their personal information.
For this project, most of the existing desing components were reused. I decided to rearrange the Customer Hub list, placing personal information at the top since it is more relevant than Tax Residency. I also introduced new categories, grouping details into Personal, Contact and Other Information for greater hierachy.
Requirements
Before moving into design, the requirements were reviewed to identify gaps and clarify how the manual process functioned. One of the biggest challenges was helping stakeholders understand how this process should translate into the digital enviroment. From this, three main challenges emerged:
The brief asked for customers to re-enter information below, which are already stored in the Customer Hub, creating friction and risking overwrites.
Each submission replaced existing data, with no control over multiple entries. In addition, stakeholders wanted the app to display ‘Tax Obligations’ rather than showing the list of countries customers had previously submitted, which created language confusion.
❸ Positive Affirmation
Customers were required to provide clear digital confirmation that their statements were true.
My Approach
❶ Re-entering Data
I negotiated a middle-ground solution with managers that led to replacing forced re-entry with a review-and-confirm screen. Existing data was pre-filled, and customers only needed to update details if something was incorrect. This approach reduced redundancy and streamlined the experience.
I challenged the inclusion of the Personal Info Review screen, as Profile & Security already had areas for managing this data. Adding it here would duplicate functionality and create friction.
Technical constraints also meant customers would need to exit the flow, update their details elsewhere, and return—lowering completion rates.
However, the middle-ground solution was adopted, as the Tax Residency and Legal team prioritised data quality over completion rate.
Technical constraints also meant customers would need to exit the flow, update their details elsewhere, and return—lowering completion rates.
However, the middle-ground solution was adopted, as the Tax Residency and Legal team prioritised data quality over completion rate.
❷ Form Resubmissions
In the early design below, I mirrored the structure and language of the tax form, which proved confusing and unintuitive for customers. Another issue was the resubmission of the tax residency information overwrote the existing record in the backend.
The list of countries with tax obligations was not visible to customers. In addition, the caption text was difficult to understand and action.
This form followed the Onboard look and feel, which was not consistent with the Customer Hub.
I proposed a clearer approach: instead of displaying “tax obligations,” the list of countries that customer had previously supplied is presented upfront. This made the process simpler, helping customers review and confirm their information with confidence.
To further reduce confusion, the language was simplified into a clear question — “Where are you tax resident?” — with three straightforward options:
- Australia only
- Australia & Overseas
- Overseas only
This approach prevented unnecessary overwrites, streamlined the experience, and gave customers confidence in their choices.
So, the initial steps for adding a country in the final Tax Residency flow were defined as follows:
The Tax Residency manager was hesitant to display customers’ country lists for security reasons. After consulting with Legal, it was confirmed safe and compliant to show.
Authentication
To further protect sensitive data, the Customer Hub required reauthentication before any updates could be made.
Apart from serving a legal purpose, this friction screen also informed customers that their existing data would be replaced and that they needed to re-enter every country of tax residency.
A Review Your Data step was added at the beginning of the flow, giving customers the opportunity to update their information upfront and avoid frustration later in the process. A caption text was included, as it was not possible to deep link directly to the correct flow—customers had to return to the landing page to make updates. In addition, email and mobile data were masked by the system, as they were managed differently from other fields
The flow asked customers “Where are you tax resident?” with three straightforward options: Australia Only, Australia & Oversea and Overseas only.
On the back end, however, the system only supported two fields: Tax Obligation Outside Australia — Yes or No. To resolve this, I worked with the team so that both Australia & Overseas and Overseas only would map to “Yes,” while Australia only mapped to “No.”
On the back end, however, the system only supported two fields: Tax Obligation Outside Australia — Yes or No. To resolve this, I worked with the team so that both Australia & Overseas and Overseas only would map to “Yes,” while Australia only mapped to “No.”
Copy was used on the Add Country screen to guide customers, with actions clearly labeled. In cases where a customer selected Australia & Oveseas, Australia was already pre-selected and displayed, reducing confusion and effort.
Customers could select a country from the dropdown and enter a TIN. To provide contextual help, a caption with a link was added, expanding on what a TIN is and how to find it.
If a customer couldn’t provide a TIN, a toggle was added to the form. When selected, it displayed the accepted reasons for not having a TIN—mirroring the options from the paper form.
Once the country was added, the customer proceeded to the Positive Affirmation screen.
❸ Positive Affirmation
A digital confirmation was added using a radio button for positive affirmation — a departure from the usual app pattern, which relied only on a confirmation button (‘By clicking Confirm, I agree…’). This new pattern was introduced in collaboration with Legal to ensure compliance.
During testing, the iOS radio button style did not look clearly interactive, so the decision was made to use a checkbox instead, which performed better for clarity. Over time, this new pattern was implemented consistently across the app.
The Customer Hub follows the iOS design library, where radio buttons are not intuitive when only a single item is displayed.
I proposed replacing radio buttons with checkmarks and worked with engineers to update the design library without affecting Android and Web.
Happy Flow
I redesigned the Tax Residency process around clarity, simplicity, and compliance, while following the Customer Hub look and feel, since that’s where the feature lives. Aligning with the Customer Hub design system ensured visual consistency, reduced cognitive load for customers, and reinforced trust by making the new flow feel familiar. It also allowed the solution to scale easily, as components and patterns were already established and could be reused across other features.
Edge Cases & Error Scenarios
Prototypes covered all three residency scenarios, plus error and edge cases, to guide development and delivery.Multi-Platform
I adapted the experience for iOS Dark, Android and Internet Banking, ensuring consistency across platforms while tailoring the design to meet the specific requirements of each environment.
Summary Of My Actions
Challenged the language
Simplified terminology into plain, customer-friendly language that improved clarity.
Restructured the experience
Redesigned the manual process into a clear digital flow.
Validated through testing
The UX research team ran a prototype testing, which confirmed improved clarity and completion rates.
Reduced data redundancy
Created a screen with pre-filled personal details, allowing customers to update only when something was incorrect.
Contextual help
Added informations to explain complex terms, such as Tax Identification Number (TIN), improving comprehension.
Avoided unecessary changes
Redesigned the flow so customers could review their countries of tax residency upfront, preventing ovewrites.
Cross-functional collaboration
Worked with engineers to ensure a smooth build, and worked with Legal team to guarantee compliance.
Extended the design library
Introduced new patterns while maintaining consistency and support scalability.
Results
+ 23,500
self-certifications submitted in the first release — exceeding client expectations
Reduced reliance on manual processes and in-branch visits
Enhanced regulatory compliance
Elevated digital transformation and customer autonomy
My Role
- Shaped the end-to-end customer experience
- Created wireframes and prototypes
- Designed user journeys
- Ensured accessibility standards were met
- Collaborated with researchers
- Managed stakeholder relationships
- Worked closely with engineers to ensure smooth delivery
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