Defense tax
The term military tax has different meanings in different countries.
German Empire
The law of July 20, 1937 introduced a military tax that was levied from September 1, 1937. It applied to all German citizens who were not called up to do two years of active military service. The tax should compensate for the economic benefits that are not conscripts could obtain by intermediate work.
The tax liability began at the beginning of the calendar year that followed the date of the convocation of the corresponding year of birth and ended at the end of the calendar year in which the taxpayer had reached the age of 45.
The tax was calculated on the income tax and was 50% in the first two years of tax liability, then 6%. However, the minimum tax in the first two calendar years was 4% of wages , then 5 per mille .
Switzerland
The military tax was a progressive federal tax introduced in Switzerland in 1940 on the income of natural persons as well as on the profits of legal persons, which had been levied under various names ("war profit tax", "crisis tax", "wehropfer") since 1915. It found its (questionable) constitutional basis in the powers of attorney , which granted the Federal Council extraordinary emergency powers during the two world wars . When the tax was introduced, it was limited to the duration of the Second World War. It was in 1983/1984 " federal tax " renamed and then converted into ordinary law. Today it is the second most important source of income for the Swiss federal state after VAT .
The military tax must be differentiated from the military compulsory compensation levy. This is to be paid by conscripted men who (for whatever reason) do not do military service.
Web links
- Defense tax . In: Meyers Konversations-Lexikon . 4th edition. Volume 16, Verlag des Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig / Vienna 1885–1892, p. 475.
- Page no longer available , search in web archives: The development of the Swiss defense tax (PDF file)
- Defense tax . In: Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon . 6th edition. Volume 20, Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig / Vienna 1909, p. 462 .