Tax resistance

Tax resistance refers to the fundamental refusal of a person, the state will pay tax.

Accrual for tax evasion

Legally the refusal to pay taxes is not distinguished from tax evasion and is therefore punishable as such.

Unlike ordinary tax evaders tax objectors act ostensibly disinterested and conscientious objection. They state that they reject certain government measures (eg war operations ), the political system or the state itself as immoral and therefore do not want to be forced to financially support this system or regarded as immoral acts.

Tax resistance takes place not usually secretly. The tax objectors searches even the contact with the media and the public to explain their own motives and to encourage other people to also refuse to pay taxes for reasons of conscience. Steuerververweigung can thus be defined as a form of nonviolent resistance and civil disobedience.

Situation in Germany

Legal

A tax of conscientious objection is not allowed in Germany. Actions for refusal to pay taxes were rejected because of " inherent constitutional bounds ." The Federal Constitutional Court ( Bundesverfassungsgericht ) decided in 1992. " Due to the strict separation of tax collection and budget terms using decision wins the state constitutional distance and independence from him financed taxpayer and therefore all citizens [ ... ] equally responsible " confirmed in the rejection of a constitutional challenge the Constitutional Court considered his decision again in 2003. in literature and case law, the right to tax resistance is almost always rejected on the grounds that the tax objectors wanted to reach through the use of taxes, or it will be a violation of the law applicable to the control purpose binding prohibition of taxes, also called non- Affektations principle.

The Federal Constitutional Court further stated: " On the basis of this separation between tax public finance and budget terms using decision is not legally relevant nor apparent to the individual taxpayer, in which budget his income tax payments ... flow and what specific purpose they serve within a certain budget. The obligation to pay taxes can thus the scope of the fundamental right of freedom of conscience (Article 4 paragraph 1 GG) untouched. "

Turns to a taxpayer against the use of tax funds to finance " armed conflicts as a means of overcoming interstate conflicts ", so this goal can be achieved only on the basis of a legal regulation, " after which it the taxpayer - if necessary under certain conditions - will be allowed to deposit the amount of tax owed ​​by him in a yet to be created peace Fund, the revenue from which only certain - may benefit purposes - in the relevant law closer to be determined. Such budgetary powers of the Parliament partially restrictive regulations, there are currently no. "So decided in 2002, a financial court in the case of a Steuerverweigerin. In the rejection of its application, however, the court showed understanding for the position of the applicant: " It may be so - as the applicant - sorry. Constitutionally, the imposition of such special fund is certainly not. "

Judgment criticism

The green right politician and judge Paul Tiedemann made ​​in 1991 with his thesis for attention that the constitutionally enshrined freedom of conscience already de lege lata ( under current law ), including the right to refuse the control of conscience. He was referring primarily to the fact that the freedom of conscience in basic legislation can not be limited by another law.

The legal scholar Harald Maihold considers it a "trick in the ruling argument " that the legal attribution rule of parliamentary sovereignty to the content of conscience will. He sees the barriers a discussion Subsumtionsfehler because not restrictable fundamental rights and should not be affected by subordinated articles of the Basic Law, if the legislature does not have to decide between different fundamental rights, to ensure both the greatest possible extent.

As an alternative to tax resistance was discussed so-called " Peace Fund " in order to post earmarked taxes can. Moral theologian Eberhard shock Hoff writes: " Where the state has alternatives he must provide this. " The obligation of the State to provide conscience- neutral alternatives is affirmed not only by moral theologians, but also by some constitutional lawyers. Prominent advocates are Erhard Eppler, the lawyer Herta Däubler -Gmelin and the journalist Franz Alt.

Although the courts all related complaints rejected unanimously and thus decided that the citizens of the State may not refuse, citing his personal belief that the payment of taxes, there have been repeated attempts to enforce tax resistance through the legal system.

Some activists made ​​before the courts, because of the constitutional freedom of conscience no financing military spending by paying taxes want to make. They are based on this ethical claim, inter alia, a formulation of the Federal Constitutional Court in 1960 in connection with the conscientious objection. The Court defined " conscience decision " within the meaning of Article 4 paragraph 3 GG any serious moral, that is, to the categories of ' Good ' and ' evil ' oriented decision in a particular situation as binding individuals for themselves and absolutely mandatory inwardly witnessing, so that he could not act without serious moral dilemma against them. " The courts did not follow this argument and dismissed the claims.

Historical examples

Examples of tax resistance and resistance to tax collection and collection in history:

• Tax strike in the Netherlands against the Spanish tax collection. It ended in 1581 under the leadership of Prince William of Orange-Nassau with the Declaration of Independence of Northern Netherlands.
• Control strikes and tax boycott of the American colonists against British taxes ( 1764-1776 ), especially against the stamp tax and the tax on tea ( Boston Tea Party ) stretched out to freedom of movement and led in 1776 to the Declaration of Independence, with the result of the separation of the American colonies from the mother country and the founding of the United States.
• The French Revolution began with the fact that on 17 June 1789, the Advanced Third Estate declared a general tax strike as a protest against the nobility and clergy.
• On November 8, 1848 disempowered Friedrich Wilhelm IV, the Prussian National Assembly and ordered their expulsion from Berlin to Brandenburg. As the deputies decided to point out the general refusal to pay taxes, the session was blown up by the military.
• Within the country people's movement in Schleswig -Holstein there was 1928/29, as a protest against the policies of the Weimar Republic to a tax boycott and public burnings of tax assessments.
• An essential detail of the Indian struggle for independence was the nonviolent struggle of Gandhi against the British salt tax ( Salt March, 1930).
• With a tax strike in 2003 tried the opposition of the Government of Venezuela to withdraw money sources and to force the President Hugo Chávez to resign.