diff --git a/.github/workflows/publish.yml b/.github/workflows/publish.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e7f600f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/publish.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+# publishes to pypi based on git releases. NOTE: The git tag is used to trigger the
+# workflow and should be the same as the version number in the pyproject.toml file.
+name: Publish to PyPI
+on:
+  tags: # run on tags starting with a v character. ex. v1.0.0
+    - v*
+jobs:
+  test:
+    uses: ./.github/workflows/test.yml
+  publish:
+    needs: test
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+    - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+    - name: Install poetry
+      run: pipx install poetry
+    - uses: actions/setup-python@v4
+      with:
+        python-version: '3.x'
+        cache: 'poetry'
+    - name: Install dependencies
+      run: poetry install
+    - name: build and publish to pypi
+      run : poetry publish --build --username $PYPI_USERNAME --password $PYPI_TOKEN
+      env:
+        PYPI_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.PYPI_TOKEN }}
+        PYPI_USERNAME: ${{ secrets.PYPI_USERNAME }}
diff --git a/.github/workflows/test.yml b/.github/workflows/test.yml
index 4640e96..ac80941 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/test.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/test.yml
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ on:
       - main
   pull_request:
   workflow_dispatch:
+  workflow_call:
 jobs:
   lint:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..67bc43c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+# Changelog
+All notable changes to this project will be documented in this file.
+
+The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/),
+and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).
+
+## [Unreleased]
+### Changed
+- improved the documentation.
+- Added github action to release the package.
+
+## [1.0.9] - 2022-11-01
+### Added
+- Python 3.11 support.
+- Package version now available via `__version__` attribute.
+
+### Changed
+- Project is now built with [Poetry](https://python-poetry.org).
+- Moved information of python version to the class initialization.
+- Lint codebase using black.
+
+## [1.0.8] - 2022-04-26
+### Fixed
+- Fixed a bug with optional `job_type` parameter for job status endpoint.
+
+## [1.0.7] - 2022-04-26
+### Changed
+- Do not require `job_type` to be set for job status endpoint.
+
+## [1.0.6] - 2022-04-25
+### Added
+- Added support for image files ending with `.jpeg`.
+
+### Changed
+- make `return_images` and `return_history` optional arguments for job status endpoint.
+
+## [1.0.5] - 2022-02-28
+### Added
+- Added support for Document Verification job type.
+
+## [1.0.4] - 2022-02-07
+## [1.0.3] - 2021-11-10
+## [1.0.2] - 2021-11-02
+## [1.0.1] - 2021-10-04
+## [1.0.0] - 2021-09-13
+
+## [0.0.13] - 2020-09-16
+### Added
+  - Created changelog.
+  - Fixed job status error string format.
+  - Added black for code formatting.
+  - Fixed python semantics.
+  - Moved zipfile out from webapi class.
+
+## [0.0.12] - 2022-08-19
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 8f3ca50..503fb30 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -580,18 +580,17 @@ If you are outside the virtual environment, run `poetry run pytest` from the roo
 
 To release a new version:
 
-- Bump the version number in `pyproject.toml` (the version in `smile_id_core/__init__.py` will pick this up)
-- Update `changelog.md` with the new version number and the changes made
-- Run `poetry build` to build package.
-- Ensure your PyPI credentials are propery configured
-- Run `poetry publish` to publish package.
+- Bump the version number in `pyproject.toml` (the version in `smile_id_core/__init__.py` will pick this up).
+- Update `CHANGELOG.md` with the new version number and the changes made.
+- Submit a pull request to the `main` branch. Merge the PR after it has been approved.
+- Create a git tag for the new version. The tag should be the same as the version number in `pyproject.toml`.
 
 ## Contributing
 
 Bug reports and pull requests are welcome on GitHub at https://github.com/smileidentity/smile-identity-core-python-3
 
-Please format the code with [black](https://github.com/psf/black) prior to submitting pull requests, by running:
-```
+Please format the code with [black](https://github.com/psf/black) prior to submitting pull requests by running the following command from the project's root:
+
+```bash
 poetry run black .
 ```
-from the project's root. 
diff --git a/changelog.md b/changelog.md
deleted file mode 100644
index 2f1d883..0000000
--- a/changelog.md
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,19 +0,0 @@
-# Changelog
-All notable changes to this project will be documented in this file.
-
-## [1.0.9] - 2022-11-01
-
-### Added
-- Python 3.11 support
-
-### Changed
-- Project is now built with [Poetry](https://python-poetry.org)
-- Moved information of python version to the class initialization
-
-## [0.0.13] - 2020-09-16
-### Added
-  * Created changelog
-  * Fixed job status error string format
-  * Added black for code formatting
-  * Fixed python semantics
-  * Moved zipfile out from webapi class