As everyone knows, tax laws are one of the certainties of life. Most of us are aware of income tax and sales tax, but did anyone know that most countries around the world taxes prostitution. We had a closer look at some of what we call the weirdest tax laws around the world.

Weird Tax Laws From Different Parts of The World

Just look at Tennessee’s tax law on the possession of illegal drugs. Apparently, you have up to 48 hours to report the fact that you are in possession of illegal drugs to the Department of Revenue. Wouldn’t you assume that such a tax would not be paid for fear of getting arrested on reporting being in possession of illegal drugs?

Why Weird Tax Laws Gets Enforced

Often times some weird tax laws get passed to help some states to close their budget gaps. Just take a look at some weird tax laws that were passed in the US back in 2010:

  • Making candy without flour was taxed by the state of Washington. “Lemon Drops” and “Rainbow Whirly Pops” were taxed due to this law being passed while “Peppermint Bark Shortbread” was exempt of any tax.
  • In Texas, belt buckles were taxed while belts on its own were exempt.
  • Then there was another strange tax law on bagels that were eaten at the bagel shops in New York. If you eat the bagel as the shop, then you must pay tax on it. But, when you took it home with you, it was exempt from any sales tax.
  • If you are ready for some laughter, then you need to hear this. Taxes were proposed on cow flatulence in some European countries, including Denmark and Ireland. The Irish managed to quickly squash the laws that they wanted to pass on penalizing cow owners at $18 per animal for emitting methane through burping and flatulence. In Denmark, the tax officials wanted to charge as much as $110 per cow due to the Food and Agriculture Organization claiming that as much as 18% of the green house gases are being emitted from livestock.
  • In Ohio if you happen to ignore an orator on Decoration Day by playing croquet of by pitching horseshoes within a mile of where the speaker stands, you can expect to be fined as much as $25. It is also regarded as illegal to get a fish drunk.
  • Apparently back in 2009, people in China (Hubei province) were forced to buy more cigarettes than what was normally the case. Government official were pushed to smoke close to a quarter of a million packs of cigarettes in an effort to stimulate the economy during the financial crisis.

Isn’t it just strange and weird what tax laws are brought out in an effort to boost the particular country or state’s revenue?