All citizens of the country are obliged to pay income taxes. This obligation includes religious communities, no matter how orthodox they may be. Jews are not exempted from this regulation.
For Jews, there is no total exemption from taxes. For those exempt, it is for taxes on things they use. Their laws conform to what is written in the Talmud, indicating that they are unwilling to be free from all taxes.
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The payment of property taxes by the Hasidim
For Jews, it is essential to obey the laws. However, according to the federal court of appeals, rabbis will be free from the tax collector. According to the Chicago Court of Appeals, rabbis and another clergy will receive tax-free housing allowances from the churches, synagogues, or mosques they serve.
However, it is a decision that has generated a lot of disagreement among different population members. For that reason, rabbis and other religious people get the recognized “parsonage”; they are not subject to taxes.
After many evaluations, it has begun to be speculated that this law is at the request of some country’s inhabitants. So far, there are at least 350 properties that receive the benefit of not paying property taxes.
Is it an exemption for all Jews?
It only benefited rabbis and those in charge of congregations and synagogues. Otherwise, they would be unable to keep these places standing and open doors for those who wish to be part of them.
Possibly, the disagreement of many people is because, additionally, some Jews receive assistance from the government. But, once again, it is a help for them to keep their places of worship available to their congregations and surrounding communities.
Another area where there have been constant complaints is New Jersey, Lakewood, where multi-family duplexes, private religious schools or yeshivot, and synagogues have been built. It is common knowledge that it is a big place and home to many families who do not owe property taxes.
Despite this, it is not as many people as most people think; thus, a large amount of money is not being covered by the taxes exempted.
So no Jews pay property taxes?
Not everyone is exempt from property tax. People who are not orthodox and make their life like the rest of the citizens are obliged to pay taxes.
On the contrary, rabbis and the rest of the community that provides services in religious spaces can be part of the exemption. The government determines this after a thorough inspection of the services offered and the place where they reside.
Finally, it is an issue that has become more controversial than expected and has not had the end that most citizens are hoping for.
Writer and content creator interested in Entrepreneurship, Marketing, Jobs and landlord issues. I have a bachelor’s degree in Communication from the Andrés Bello Catholic University, VE, and I also studied at Chatham University, USA. In this blog I write and collect information of interest around agreements, property and mortgage.