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Germany collects record amount of ‘dog tax’ as passion for pups spikes amid pandemic

Germans are adopting more dogs amid the coronavirus crisis - meaning that the country has taken in a record amount of taxes for them.

Germany collects record amount of 'dog tax' as passion for pups spikes amid pandemic
Photo: DPA

The Germans’ love of dogs is providing local authorities with high tax revenues even in the crisis. In 2020, the income from dog tax rose to a record value of 380.2 million, according to new figures from the Federal Statistical Office released in response to a question from Welt am Sonntag. 

That marks an increase of almost three percent compared to the previous year, when all owners together paid 370 million in taxes for their dogs. 

All dogs in Germany are subject to the Hundesteuer or ‘dog tax’, an annual fee which differs from state to state and is usually collected from dog owners.

READ ALSO: Prostitution, dogs and loneliness: A look at Germany’s weirdest taxes

But the German’s love of four-legged friends has not just grown amid the pandemic, when more people began working from home and looked for a source of companionship. Since reunification, the revenue from the tax has tripled; in 1991, it yielded just 123 million.

The Hundesteuer is thus one of the few types of tax that brought in more money despite the coronavirus pandemic. Although the increase of only three percent raises the question of whether every dog is actually reported to the tax office. 

According to the German Canine Association (VDH), 20 percent more dogs were bought by Bundesrepublik residents in 2020 compared to previous years, reported Spiegel in January. 

READ ALSO: Furry friends help Germans ease pandemic blues

Yet the amount collected in taxes depends on how many pups a person already owns. In many states, the amount of tax to be paid per dog increases with the number of dogs in the household. 

In Berlin, for example, the first dog costs 120 per year with each additional dog costing 180 per year. 

In Düsseldorf, the tax for one dog in the household is 96, and raises to 150 for two.

Have you also adopted a dog during the coronavirus crisis? Let us know in the comments. 

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TAXES

Beskæftigelsesfradraget: What is Denmark’s employment allowance?

Denmark's government may soon announce changes to its tax reform plans, which will give all wage earners a bigger employment allowance. What is this and how will it affect foreigners' earnings?

Beskæftigelsesfradraget: What is Denmark's employment allowance?

What is the employment allowance? 

The Beskæftigelsesfradraget (from beskæftigelse, meaning employment, and fradrag, meaning rebate) was brought in by the centre-right Liberal Party back in 2004, the idea being that it would incentivise people to get off welfare and into a job.

Everyone whose employer pays Denmark’s 8 percent AM-bidrag, or arbejdsmarkedsbidrag, automatically receives beskæftigelsesfradraget. Unlike with some of Denmark’s tax rebates, there is no need to apply. The Danish Tax Agency simply exempts the first portion of your earnings from income taxes. 

In 2022, beskæftigelsesfradraget was set at 10.65 percent of income with a maximum rebate of 44,800 kroner. 

How did the government agree to change the employment allowance in its coalition deal? 

In Responsibility for Denmark, the coalition agreement between the Social Democrats, the Liberals and the Moderate Party, the new government said it would set aside 5 billion kroner for tax reforms.

Of this, 4 billion kroner was earmarked for increasing the employment allowance, with a further 0.3 billion going towards increasing an additional employment allowance for single parents.

According to the public broadcaster DR, the expectation was that this would increase the standard employment  allowance to 12.75 percent up to a maximum rebate of 53,600 kroner. 

How might this be further increased, according to Børsen? 

According to a report in the Børsen newspaper, the government now plans to set aside a further 1.75 billion kroner for tax reforms, of which nearly half — about 800 million kroner — will go towards a further increase to the employment allowance. 

The Danish Chamber of Commerce earlier this month released an analysis in which it argued that by raising removing all limits on the rebate for single parents and raising the maximum rebate for everone else by 20,300 kroner, the government could increase the labour supply by 4,850 people, more than double the 1,500 envisaged in the government agreement. 

According to the Børsen, the government estimates that its new extended allowance will increase the labour supply by 5,150 people.  

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