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Cutting edge “digital identity” technology is being considered to administer devolved taxes in Scotland, it has emerged.

Research is being carried out by officials at Revenue Scotland, the devolved tax authority, into the cutting-edge digital tax system used in Estonia.

The Baltic state is recognised as a global leader in digital government, with citizens able to access a huge range of public and private services including banking and health with a single digital identification code.

Rather than being held in a single database, private information is dispersed across a web of data ‘“pockets” encrypted using blockchain technology so it can only be accessed by the right authorities.

The system allows Estonians to complete tax returns online in as little as three minutes. However, the Baltic state accepts that the ease and convenience of the system means citizens must accept the trade off of reduced privacy.

Estonia’s ambassador to the UK, Tiina Intelmann, begins a visit to Scotland today which is set to include meetings with Nicola Sturgeon and finance secretary Derek Mackay, as well as a symposium on digital health services at tech startup hub Codebase.

“We are very open to sharing information about what we have done, but not every