A woman in Germany saved a small fortune in loose change found in public toilets but is now being investigated by tax officials for not declaring her earnings.
The woman operated a cleaning service for 50 public toilets in Germany. She employed cleaners and paid them only minimal wages and forced them to hand over any loose change they found while cleaning.
In total, she collected €40,000 (£34,880) before a disgruntled employee squealed to the state prosecutor.
The police were sent round to the woman's home in Bonn, Germany and discovered the hoard of coins in her garage approaching knee-level. The coins were shovelled into a 7.5 tonne truck to be taken away.
While this woman was evading tax, some French citizens have been offering to pay higher taxes.
A group of some of the richest people in France, including the L'Oreal heiress, the head of Air France and the head of oil company Total, have called for a "special contribution" tax for the super-rich.
They signed a petition which read: "When the public finance deficit and the prospects of a worsening state debt threaten the future of France and Europe and when the government is asking everybody for solidarity, it seems necessary for us to contribute."
In the UK, if you do not declare all your taxable earnings to HMRC and you are found out, you could face interest charges and penalties as well as having to pay back the tax you owe. If the amount is great, such as over £50,000, there is the possibility that you could be prosecuted and imprisoned.
There is also a penalty of £100 for failure to register for National Insurance contributions if you are self-employed.
Related links:
Read more on the story (Yahoo! News)
Read about taxable and non-taxable income (FindLaw)
Find local tax solicitors throughout the UK (FindLaw)
