Why so many non-religious Europeans pay church taxes
And how cunning Icelanders avoid it
IN THE Old Testament, priests are told to take a tenth of every believer’s crops as a tax to support the faith. In these latter days, they can outsource the job to the state. In many European countries, “church taxes”—levied on all registered members of religious organisations by governments—still exist.
This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Pay to pray, even if you don’t”
From the September 14th 2019 edition
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