German Constitution Permits Tax On Bankers' Bonuses, Report Shows
by Ulrika Lomas, Tax-News.com, Brussels
Wednesday, January 06, 2010
According to a report published by the Research Services of the German parliament
(Wissenschaftliche Dienste), the country’s constitution does not categorically
rule out the possibility of introducing a special tax on bankers’ bonuses.
The legal report indicates that Germany’s constitution will indeed allow
the legislator to levy such a tax, provided that the law is correctly formulated.
Although the report warns that limiting the exceptional tax to bankers, a single
professional group, creates certain legal difficulties, it nevertheless suggests that
such a course of action is possible, provided that the aim of the one-off tax is comprehensively justified.
The legislator must clearly and comprehensively distinguish the special tax
on bankers’ bonuses from other taxes levied in Germany, the report explains.
Such findings from the government’s own service contradict a recent statement
made by Chancellor Angela Merkel, who rejected the idea of introducing such
a penalty tax, arguing that to do so would be unconstitutional.
Although Chancellor Merkel has described the idea of levying a tax on bankers’
bonuses as a “charming idea”, she has instead advocated
an international stock market transactions tax. The leader of the Christian
Social Union, Horst Seehofer, has also expressed his support for the introduction
of such a tax.
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