Once Geralt of Rivia is carrying a large enough purse, the tax office takes notice. Walk into Oxenfurt’s markets in The Witcher 3 with too much coin and Deputy Tax Enumerator Walthemor Mitty stops you for a short audit that begins the Hearts of Stone secondary quest The Taxman Cometh. Your three replies decide whether you owe anything at all.
Quick answer: Answer “No” to at least two of Mitty’s three questions to avoid all taxes and receive the Taxpayer in Good Standing Diploma. Answer “Yes” to two or more to owe 1,000 Crowns at the Vivaldi Bank.
How the audit triggers in Oxenfurt
The encounter only fires when Geralt holds 35,000 Crowns or more and passes through the Oxenfurt market. Try to leave the market with that much coin and Mitty calls out to confirm your identity before questioning your sudden income. The quest is part of the Hearts of Stone expansion and carries a suggested level of 32.
You cannot miss or fail it. If you spend below the threshold, the tax collector simply never appears, and it stays available even after the main story is finished.
The three questions and the best answers
Mitty asks three questions in no fixed order. The outcome depends only on how many you answer with “Yes” versus “No.” Your actual play history does not matter, so you are free to lie. To skip the fine entirely, give the “No” answers below to at least two of them.
| Question topic | Answer to avoid tax |
|---|---|
| Bulk rawhide trading in White Orchard | Me? Never! |
| Dealing in pearls from bivalves | No, never. |
| Taking items from someone’s home | No, nuh-uh, never. |
You only need two matching answers, not all three. A single “Yes” among two “No” replies still counts as being in good standing.
Answer “No” twice: the diploma outcome
Deny at least two of the three activities and Mitty declares you a Taxpayer in Good Standing, handing over a commemorative Taxpayer in Good Standing Diploma. The quest ends on the spot with no coin lost.
The diploma is purely a novelty item. It does nothing mechanically and cannot be hung or displayed at Corvo Bianco, despite Mitty joking that you should frame it above the mantle.
Answer “Yes” twice: the summons and the 1,000 Crown fine
Admit to two or more of the activities and Mitty issues a Summons to Payment. You then owe 1,000 Crowns in back taxes, payable at the Vivaldi Bank in Novigrad.
Until the debt is cleared, banker Vimme Vivaldi refuses to deal with you in any way, including playing Gwent. Since 1,000 Crowns is trivial when you already hold at least 35,000, some players choose this route on purpose: paying the summons also grants an extra 100 XP on top of the quest’s base reward.
What each question references
The audit is a joke CD Projekt Red added in response to well-known money exploits found after launch. Each question points at one of them.
- Rawhide in White Orchard: killing the cows there for hides and milk, then respawning them to farm the sale repeatedly.
- Pearls from bivalves: buying cheap sea shells, dismantling them for pearls, and reselling the pearls to the same vendor at a large markup.
- Taking items from homes: looting people’s houses freely, since residents never react to Geralt walking in and pocketing their belongings.
How to confirm the quest is complete
If you answered “No” twice, the quest closes as soon as the conversation ends and the diploma lands in your inventory. If you answered “Yes” twice, the quest stays open until you travel to the Vivaldi Bank and pay the 1,000 Crowns; once paid, the summons resolves and Vimme Vivaldi resumes normal service and Gwent. Either way the quest awards 50 XP on completion, with the paid route adding the extra 100 XP.
