Faeser wants an upper limit for cash payments - the Union does not think so
Created: 11/14/2022 10:37 am
By: Lisa Mayerhofer
Buying jewelry with 11,000 euros in cash – according to Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD), that should soon be a thing of the past.
She wants to introduce a cash limit of 10,000 euros.
Berlin – According to a Bundesbank survey, cash is the most commonly used means of payment in Germany.
Even large payments are sometimes paid in cash - because there is no upper cash limit in this country.
But that could change soon: Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) has now spoken out in favor of a limit of 10,000 euros.
"A 30,000 euro cash purchase of jewelry or watches should soon be a thing of the past," the minister told
Bild am Sonntag
.
She advocates the introduction of a general cash limit of 10,000 euros.
Resistance to these plans came from the CSU.
Faeser wants to “smash criminal structures” with a cash cap
A cash cap "reduces the risk of criminal assets being concealed," Faeser said.
She is concerned with "smashing criminal structures and consistently depriving them of criminal income," continued the Federal Minister of the Interior.
Ownership structures must become more transparent and property owners easier to identify.
The same applies to cash transfers.
In fact, Germany is considered a money laundering paradise.
According to ZDF, an estimated 100 billion euros are laundered here every year.
The German Tax Union has also been calling for a cash cap for some time, and some parties support it for certain purchases.
The union argues that this would make money laundering significantly more difficult.
A border is also being discussed at EU level.
Some EU countries already have cash limits.
Cash limit: resistance from the CSU
Rejection came from the CSU: "In Germany we have strict and effective obligations to provide evidence if someone wants to pay higher amounts in cash," said the parliamentary director of the CSU in the Bundestag, Stefan Müller, the
Handelsblatt
.
"That's quite enough." Experiences with cash caps in other European countries also show that these are no more effective than strict verification requirements.
The CDU domestic politician Alexander Throm supported a ban on cash payments when buying real estate, as was also agreed in the coalition agreement.
This is a "sensible measure".
It is also important to grant the investigative authorities better powers to provide information and to inspect financial transactions in order to “elucidate” criminal money flows “more effectively”.
(lma/AFP)