ITALY
The Telegraph (United Kingdom)
The Italian Catholic Church will be stripped of an historic tax exemption from 2013 after the government upheld a divisive decree under close scrutiny from EU watchdogs.
The Church currently pays tax on several properties it owns that are commercial enterprises but is exempt if at least some of the activities on the property are “non-commercial” – for example a chapel in a hotel.
“The regulatory framework will be definite by January 1, 2013 – the start of the fiscal year – and will fully respect the (European) Community law,” Prime Minister Mario Monti’s government said in a statement late Tuesday.
In February, the government had amended Italy’s property tax law to end the Church’s privileges amid rising calls for the Vatican to share in debt crisis sacrifices and in the face of intense scrutiny from the European Commission.
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