While Hungarians generally consider themselves honest taxpayers, they suspect that half of their neighbors are fraudsters, a recent survey by Progresszív Intézet found. At the same time, the survey also revealed that the majority of the population believe that certain smaller or bigger violations of tax regulations are acceptable and justifiable, writes Stop.hu.
Respondents believe that over half of their fellow Hungarians (53%) use loopholes in the tax system. However, a large majority (84%) answered “no” to the question “Have you ever evaded taxes?” while only 8% responded in the affirmative. A higher than average number of Budapest residents and those with middle or higher levels of education admitted to evading taxes.
The only unacceptable form of tax fraud agreed upon by a slim majority (51%) was failing to declare income from a second job. Furthermore, over half of society (53%) considers it normal that a part of worker’s salaries are handed over in an envelope containing cash that goes untaxed.
Double standards were revealed in other questions as well. While in a time of crisis people do not accept the government cutting expenses in order to restore balance, the majority would apply the same solution in their own household to solve the problem.
Another possible headline: “84% of Hungarians lie in tax survey”.
Yes, absurd. I have yet to meet a Hungarian that doesn’t evade tax.
Well, this country is fucked (or absurd if you’re just) in too many ways, taxation and tax evasion being one prime example. A corrupt, money-grubbing and tax-evading political elite slaps a huge tax on companies and individuals on claims too many people and companies dodge their duties but it needs money. What they ended up with (too long ago to remember) is a country of disenchanted, bitter and cynical tax-evading individuals and companies, who are sick and tired of their money-wasting wanker of a government and public administration, who feel they have every right to avoid and evade taxes as long as they are grossly overtaxed by a tax evading, corrupt and inefficient political elite (unfortunately rightly so.) And all of us are in this. And the said thing is, we can blame politicians, right- or left-wing, Apeh, judges, police, bad health care, education, extremism, Tesco, T-com, etc. all we want, all these are run by us. So I tell you what wrong with Hungary: that it’s run by Hungarians. We’re savage beasts with Central Asian genes.
Tax is just virtual money. According to APEH records there’s about 1.5 trillion Ft in unpaid taxes. They don’t even expect to get most of that. Add to this amount the taxes APEH doesn’t know about and we’re talking about a lot of money that doesn’t really exist. Might as well lower the taxes and make an effort to enforce collection.
And stop wasting what’s actually collected. Why pay 3 billion to MAZSIHISZ? Why pay another 3 billion for catholic “Sunday School”? Why feed nearly 400 MPs, each of them may claim 10s of millions as “expenses” without providing any receipts? Why spend billions on government propaganda? This country is in serious need of new management.