France Taxation

by Omegaman 7 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  Omegaman

  I remember reading some posts some time back about the society trying to avoid paying taxes in France and using the courts.
  I wondered how this could be true, since the Org would always say to us rank and file to pay back to Cesar what belongs to him.
  
  The Org has no problem with reporting on this in their 2007 yearbook they give a report on France . In a nutshell the French Government (Caesar) requests them to pay taxes, do they do so. NO they fight it in the courts ( getting Policitical ) lose the case, do they pay the taxes NO but they URGENTLY contact the European court of Human rights and appeal it …the org’s objective is to determine whether the religious freedom of JW’s has been violated and whether there is any discrimination involved…Would Jesus have supported this action?
  
  Unbelievable, what would the org say if a member of the rank and file was to go protesting that paying taxes is not right ? Would that be OK….
• 

  bluebell

  In the UK a charity is not taxed on any surplus arising from it's charitable activities, if there are any trading activities, the profits from these have to be below a certain percentage of the whole surplus if they are not to be taxed (5% of activites I think) if the trading activites are a higher percentage, then the trading activites are taxable.

  I think it's the same in France and I think the French revenue were of the opinion that not all the surplus was charitable and therefore some of the surplus was actually taxable profits. And that's what they were arguing about. Also that other religious bodies were treated as being charitable but suddenly the dubs weren't and were instead being presented with a tax bill.

  Anyone got any corrections on this please do so, it's only a vague memory on my part.
• 

  Narkissos

  I think, in part, they called this upon themselves by failing to declare any income from offerings for a long time. Hence their estimated income from the past few years was taxed at the worst possible rate, plus growing interests.

  However they may still win before the European Court inasmuch as they can argue to have been treated differently than other religious associations, on this very issue. The case is still pending I think.

  Anyway Omegaman's point is correct. We are far from the NT principle of 'giving back to Caesar whatever money he may ask coz money is his stuff and we're after something else...' But I don't see any other religious organisation taking this principle seriously either.
• 

  hillary_step

  Narkissos,

  However they may still win before the European Court inasmuch as they can argue to have been treated differently than other religious associations, on this very issue. The case is still pending I think.

  The case is still pending. I have it from someone close to McCabe who is fighting the case in the European Courts for the WTS, that he does not expect the WTS to win. At last count the French Ministry of Taxation has levied against the WTS over $100 million dollars in backtaxes and accrued interest.

  Of course the WTS think that Satan is aiming his bureacratic weaponry specifically at them, whereas the reality is that they are merely one of many high control 'religions' that do not fit the qualifications settled by the French Government as to what is a religion meriting tax exemption, and what is not.

  Good to see the WTS clumped in by association with the Scientologists where they belong, sort of a Scientology Lite.

  HS
• 

  greendawn

  That is the contention of the WTS in France where the government refuses to accept it as a religion and assigns to it the status of a cult, no wonder since they destroy families with their shunning policy and condemn little children to death by getting their parents to deny them life saving blood transfusions. In addition they have built a name for themselves as a very dictatorial and fascist organisation.
• 

  OnTheWayOut

  the government refuses to accept it as a religion and assigns to it the status of a cult

  The issue is pretty straightforward to most people. The WTS tells the rank-and-file that the government
  wants to unfairly tax them. They tell people that it is a matter of finance, not a cult issue. They don't
  want the average dubby to start investigating. In France, the donations start being diverted by the
  rank-and-file to other countries (Britain, I believe) to avoid the tax. They don't suggest that rank avoid
  paying fair taxes, but that this is unfair. Meanwhile, the locals can read about it. They know the issues,
  so WTS really has to combat the brand of "CULT" in France.

  I would be fascinated to read this in France.
• 

  jaguarbass

  It does make you wonder.
• 

  Narkissos

  It really depends who will weigh more before the judges of the EC, the last few European states with a somewhat voluntarist "anti-cult" policy (France, Germany, Belgium so far), or the constant criticism of the US Department of State which insists on absolute "freedom of religion" (and perhaps especially American-based religions) everywhere...

  If (as I fear) Nicolas Sarkozy is to be elected as president of the French Republic in a couple of weeks, France might leave the "anti-cult" group very soon. Sarkozy has taken a generally pro-American stance on many issues and has shown very complacent to "cults" (e.g. Scientology) as former Minister of the Interior in charge of religious issues. That must be one of those times when JW leaders regret they can't use their electoral potential (although Sarkozy doesn't really need them I'm afraid).