Yes, you read that correctly: there is a tax on gassy cows. In Europe, the methane created in cow gas has somehow become a statistic, blamed for around 18 percent of greenhouse gases. The problem is pronounced around slaughterhouses, where hundreds of cows are crammed together, creating concentrated areas of methane. Denmark’s solution? Put a tax on cows. Each farm owner pays around $110 USD per cow, according to Piligrim-accounting.com.
In many countries, any official bribery can be seen as a criminal offense. Until 1999, certain types of business-related bribes were tax deductible in Germany. Some bribes were increasing the cost of public contracts by 20 to 30 percent, says Bloomberg.com. The economic climate for a while was such that “business as usual didn’t cut it anymore.” Only those who could afford the regular costs of doing business plus bribery money for potential customers, clients, contractors and affiliates could make a profit.
To encourage British filmmakers to make more films about Britain, the country gave a tax exemption for films that pass a “cultural test.” A series of mathematical equations determine how culturally British a film is. Films of any budget level can claim a payable cash rebate of up to 25 percent of qualifying film-production expenditure. Films that spend at least 20 million pounds (about $30 million US) can claim a 25 percent cash rebate on the first 20 million pounds and 20 percent beyond that according to Britishfilmcommission.org.uk.
Switzerland has a reputation for holding a high number of offshore bank accounts. The country has some of the laxest tax laws, but what draws wealthy individuals from around the world is Switzerland’s secrecy laws. It’s illegal for a bank to reveal the name of a client, making it possible for clients to hide money there. Switzerland houses 27 percent of the world’s offshore wealth, according to Economist.com. In recent years, the U.S. has been demanding Swiss banks hand over certain client information, and a select few Swiss banks have started to comply, including UBS.
In Ireland, the profit that artists make on the sale of their artwork can be exempt from taxes if it meets certain criteria including books or some form of writing, plays, musical compositions, paintings, pictures or sculptures, according to Revenue.ie. For artists to receive the exemption, they must submit a claims form, proof that their work has sold, and other supporting documentation in the form of testimonials.
China has always placed high taxes on cigarettes, and the taxes on tobacco help boost the country’s economy. When China’s economy went into a downturn, the government decided to capitalize on the tobacco tax and demand that people buy cigarettes. They couldn’t force people to smoke, but they did set quotas for cigarette sales. The rule threatened to fine officials who didn’t meet their quotas, as well as any officials caught smoking foreign brands, says Telegraph.co.uk.
New York put a double tax on sliced bagels: the popular breakfast food is taxed once as a grocery and a second time as prepared food when sold at a restaurant. It’s a fine line. Sliced bagels that don’t have spread are only taxed once as a grocery. The moment a vendor puts so much as a dollop of cream cheese on the bagel, it is subject to a second prepared-food tax, says Piligram-accounting.com. But there is more: even an uncut bagel can be taxed twice — as prepared food and a grocery — if the consumer eats it at the location where it was bought.
FIFA, the soccer world’s governing body, Federation Internationale de Football Association, knows that countries want to host the World Cup because of the money it pumps into the economy through tourism and spin-off events. This allows FIFA to make some large demands. Any country that bids for the event must give tax exemptions to FIFA and other “parties involved in the hosting and staging of an event,” according to a FIFA interview on Bbc.com. The exemption extend to FIFA subsidiaries and must include all events. They also must not be limited to any time frame.
