One in four would fiddle their taxes

Survey finds people would ‘forget’ part of their income if they could avoid paying tax

ONE in four people would, if they had the chance, be tempted to “forget” part of their income to avoid being taxed on it.

A survey for the M6 TV Capital show uncovered the potential tax dodgers and also showed that people from different parts of the political divide had different views on how to behave.

The proportion of people tempted by tax fraud rose to 29% for the over-50s, 31% of Right-wing supporters, 38% for freelancers and 41% for Front National supporters.

On the other side, people who dismissed the idea of fraud included 74% of working class people, 76% for graduates and 84% for Left-wing supporters.

However, the study by RTL/Harris Interactive found that 44% of people had already paid for a baby-sitter, gardener or car mechanic in cash to avoid VAT and social charges. The proportion reached 52% for the over-65s and 58% for the most well-off participants.

• People with PayPal accounts have been told by the finance ministry in a clarification that they do not need to declare PayPal accounts as foreign bank accounts for tax purposes. The ministry added the condition that the account was funded from a French bank account and that transfers did not amount to more than €10,000 a year.