German 'sex tax' catches on | News.com.au
COLOGNE'S novel idea of a "sex tax'' has been so successful that other hard-up cities in Germany are considering following suit, officials say.
Since 2004 Cologne has levied a monthly special tax of around 150 euros ($A220) on prostitutes and 3 euros ($A4.40) per square metre for brothels, reportedly bringing in 800,000 euros ($A1.17 million) for the west German city last year.
With the recession blowing a hole in their finances, other cities in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia including Essen, Duisburg and Dortmund have applied to state authorities do the same.
"We expect to make a decision soon,'' Ludger Hameier, a spokesman for the state's interior ministry said.
Brothels are legal in Germany and theoretically subject to the normal tax and employment laws.
The "sex tax'' is in addition to the standard tax on prostitutes' incomes.
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