Prostitutes pay up

The German city of Bonn decided this year to tax its prostitutes, but unsurprisingly, officials couldn't seem to get the prostitutes working on the street to file their tax returns.

For the women working in organized settings like the several brothels in town, it wasn't a problem. But women on the streets often don't speak German or stay in one city for very long, according to Monika Frömbgen, a spokeswoman for the city.

To solve the problem, the city came up with a novel solution: a prostitution tax machine.

"It's just a regular parking ticket machine that was retrofitted for this new purpose here in Bonn," said Frömbgen. "The street prostitutes put 6 euros ($8.55) in and the machine prints out a ticket for them."

The machines are located in a new area the city opened this year with a security guard, a bathroom for freshening up and six parking bays divided by wooden walls where the women and their customers can get some privacy. Prostitution is legal in Germany and although cities like Bonn might not like it, Frömbgen said, they can't ban it from the streets completely.

But the sex workers, their clients and their activities inevitably bother some residents. Bonn's previous street prostitution strip was somewhat residential and the neighbors' complaints were becoming a problem, which prompted the city to move the strip to an industrial area near the train tracks, next to an existing brothel.

Tough times

One of the prostitutes out on the street is "Nicoleta," a 24-year-old woman from Romania. For her, the problem isn't the tax but that lately there isn't enough work.

"It's not that much," she said of the nightly fee. "But for the girls it's not so good. It's not that much money, but when there's no work, well…"

According to Nicoleta, business was better on the old strip. She isn't sure why, but suspects it might have to do with the brothel at the end of the street.

"I've talked to lots of girls and they say that maybe the brothel is why we're not making as much money here," she said. "Maybe the customers don't want to be recognized or seen near the brothel, you know, maybe because they've got a wife at home."

But, she admits the facilities with the bathroom and the security guard are nice. She thinks more parking slots would be better, but finds it nice that each one has an emergency button. If one of the prostitutes has a problem with a customer, they can immediately alert the security guard.

Paying their share

From the city's perspective, the new arrangement is much easier to patrol and, with the tax tickets, it's easier to check who's paid and who hasn't. But Frömbgen says the new facility and the security guard are part of the reason the street prostitutes have to pay the tax.

"What we're saying by imposing this tax is that prostitution costs the taxpayer money," she said. "Why should the taxpayer have to shoulder this burden? That's why we think the tax is justifiable."

The machine was installed last Friday. According to the city, the take for the first weekend was already more than 250 euros.

Author: Holly Fox
Editor: Martin Kuebler