3 ms·

If it were only tax exemptions. Germany pays half a billion every year to the church because of a deal from a hundred years ago. That is in addition to anything

by qznc 3y ago

If it were only tax exemptions. Germany pays half a billion every year to the church because of a deal from a hundred years ago. That is in addition to anything with taxes. https://www.ncronline.org/news/germany-continues-payments-churches-century-after-deciding-stop https://www.ncronline.org/news/germany-continues-payments-ch...

mcv 3y ago
Is that different from a church tax? Many countries levy taxes on behalf of officially recognised churches. If you're registered as a church member, you pay an additional tax that goes to your church. You can generally opt out by deregistering as a member. I think Netherland used to have this in the past, but got rid of it at some point. Some European countries still have it. I assume there's still some standards for how those churches can use that money though; churches are not meant to be for-profit ventures. Though some of them (older ones especially) are quite rich. Younger churches tend to be poor.
- qznc 3y ago
  It is not related to the church tax. It comes on top.
- usrusr 3y ago
  As qznc started, those are separate things. One is a crazy leftover from Napoleonic days (consider the amount of changes to German statehood that thing has survived!), the other is an opt-out thing (or rather an opt-in actually, unless your parents did the "in" for you) that I actually think is super nice to have. It should be extended to the point where it's basically an API for income-scaled membership fees that's open to every org that wants to have it (and to public broadcasting, to achieve "separate from state" in a way that isn't a flat household tax)
- josefx 3y ago
  As far as I understand the payments Germany still makes are for the properties it "bought" from the churches when the separation between church and state was declared. There have been plans to repay the remaining sum in one big payment, but those have been around for probably just as long as the agreement itself. The "church tax" is collected independently from that and it is a "paid" service the state offers to any public organization that falls into the same broad legal definition used for churches. As far as I understand the state actually makes a profit from the cut it keeps.

by qznc 3y ago

mcv 3y ago

Is that different from a church tax? Many countries levy taxes on behalf of officially recognised churches. If you're registered as a church member, you pay an additional tax that goes to your church. You can generally opt out by deregistering as a member. I think Netherland used to have this in the past, but got rid of it at some point. Some European countries still have it. I assume there's still some standards for how those churches can use that money though; churches are not meant to be for-profit ventures. Though some of them (older ones especially) are quite rich. Younger churches tend to be poor.

qznc 3y ago
It is not related to the church tax. It comes on top.
usrusr 3y ago
As qznc started, those are separate things. One is a crazy leftover from Napoleonic days (consider the amount of changes to German statehood that thing has survived!), the other is an opt-out thing (or rather an opt-in actually, unless your parents did the "in" for you) that I actually think is super nice to have. It should be extended to the point where it's basically an API for income-scaled membership fees that's open to every org that wants to have it (and to public broadcasting, to achieve "separate from state" in a way that isn't a flat household tax)
josefx 3y ago
As far as I understand the payments Germany still makes are for the properties it "bought" from the churches when the separation between church and state was declared. There have been plans to repay the remaining sum in one big payment, but those have been around for probably just as long as the agreement itself. The "church tax" is collected independently from that and it is a "paid" service the state offers to any public organization that falls into the same broad legal definition used for churches. As far as I understand the state actually makes a profit from the cut it keeps.