Last year, the Philadelphia Department of Revenue unveiled interactive kiosks in our customer service location in Center City. We’ve now upgraded the touch screens to include instructions in Spanish and Chinese.
The kiosks don’t replace Revenue customer-service representatives. They direct you to the service you need, and help manage wait times. After a short visit to the kiosks, you can either:
- Get a paper ticket and track your number on a monitor, or
- Track and manage your wait time via text messages on your mobile phone.
When you pick the second option, you can even leave the Municipal Services Building. The system will send you a text message when you are near the head of the line. At that point, you can request more time if needed.
The kiosks connect you to the right representative, and reduce wait times for everyone.
Services for LEP residents
Many Philadelphia taxpayers and water customers don’t speak English as their first language. But limited-English proficiency (LEP) should never be a barrier between our department and city residents.
In Fiscal Year 2019, Revenue staff used language interpretation services more than 1,500 times. Together, Spanish and Chinese made up more than 90% of all interpretation requests.
The kiosks’ language upgrade is part of a larger effort to improve our communication with immigrant and non-English speaking neighbors.
Instructions in Spanish and Chinese inform customers about Revenue services, including help with tax and water bills.
It’s one more way we’re helping all residents comply with payment obligations and, when needed, take advantage of assistance programs.
