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Stupid law
Money can be changed into something that isn't money, yet functionally works the same for a single transaction, very easily
Especially if you're already committing crimes
This is as effective as DRM; it hurts law abiding citizens more than those breaking the law
No that's not stupid. It adds a layer of friction for criminals. In Italy where this law already applies for 5000β¬ (before it was 2000) it helps reduce black market.
Source: I used to be paid in cash (illegally) and it was a pain in the ass to do anything so now I get paid lawfully and my boss pays taxes
Cash only tax free jobs are great IDK what you're on about
True criminals do not care. Mafia do not write invoices to sell/buy drugs or to pay a killer.
Then the problem was not that your boss was paying you in cash but that he had the possibility to pay you under the table without (basically) any kind of risk.
Shops usually don't accept "something that isn't money" as payment.
This measure aims to make it harder for criminals to wash their illicit money using legit businesses.
Money is the universal way to exchange goods or services. Yes, you may be getting paid for your tax-doging renovation in gold, bitcoin or artworks. You may accept Monero or Roblox gift cards as a payment for drugs. And you might find other people who will accept Roblox gift cards, but that doesn't scale.
But then you have 10.000β¬+ in Bitcoin or gold and need to exchange it into real money in order to use it. Your local supermarket will not accept gold. You may be able to buy a house with Bitcoin, but the seller also needs to launder this money into something usable.
The neat thing here is that this might work for some small drug dealer or some craftsman doing a few things off the book. But if you're doing a lager scale operation, that will get harder
Exactly. Not a bug, as designed.
I'm OK with this law. Stops a 20-something from going into a shop with a bag of cash and walking out with a rolex or a luxury car. Plenty of drug dealers and other gangsters do this, and the police is annoyed.
Thankfully the police can now confiscate any item on you that you can't prove is yours and how you legally got it.
That's completely fucked. Why do you care if somebody wants to buy something nice in cash?
Look up βcivil asset forfeitureβ to see where the logical conclusion of your flawed thinking ends up in practice.
This is what is wrong. I am not the one that should prove that what I do is legal, it is the police that must prove that what I am doing is illegal.
The trouble with that is it can be very hard to actually prove for known scumbags. I live in a small country and they have a "criminal assets bureau" which can bring folks in massive houses with fancy cars and expensive watches to court and the burden of proof is lower.
It basically boils down to "there's no way this cunt can legally afford all this" then it gets seized.
Before it was created you had criminal kingpins showing up to pick up their dole (social security) weekly while raking in massive money criminally.
It's not abused like that eminent domain thing in the US is though. There's still court required.
I know, but my point still stand: someone is innocent until proven guilty.
Seizing somthing only because "there is no way this scumbag can legally afford all this" is nothing different from jailing someone because "there is no way you have not violated some law".
I am not required to justify myself (in this case: paying something with cash accepted by the state), it is police's job to prove that the cash I used is obtained illegally, not mine to prove that it is legal.
I undertand that for 10.000 euros or more it is better to use a bank tranfer to pay, less risks for everyone, but assuming that I am a criminal just because I do it don't really solve the problem.
I agree generally but this isn't used for small sums. You're talking hundreds of thousands / millions in highly visible ill gotten gains for it to be deployed.
And I think 10k is a bullshit amount for this new law. People buy cars second hand all the time with cash fully legit.
We have CAB and the Special Criminal Courts, two systems that currently do the job of a piss poor police force. They are a huge target for misuse and abuse should we ever see a rightward leap in our government.
Luckily we have the best electoral system.
Are you missing a /s? Do you know how long it would take me to prove the shirt on my back is mine and how I legally got it if a cop wanted to harass me about it?
If you own an expensive watch are you just supposed to keep the 12-year-old receipt in your wallet in case you get stopped by a cop?
My wife's wedding ring isn't worth $10k, but it still is a hefty chunk of change. 1) I dont know how I would prove to a cop that it's not worth 10k, and 2) even if it was, I don't know how I would prove I didn't buy it with drug money.
This is the equivalent to US civil forfeiture, which has been shown time and time again to be a broken system rife with abuse.
Not at all, and no need to keep receipts on you. The cops need to get approval from an on-call prosecutor (kind-of) and have probable cause. They're not going to stop a random citizen about their wedding ring, and even if they did the prosecutor wouldn't allow them to take it. This targets known criminals without any income flaunting expensive shit. Now their shit gets taken away, and I'm good with it.
Youβve obviously not paid attention to McConnell and Trump weaponizing US courts
Yeah as an American this is uncomfortably naive. I warned my countryfolk about it once and I'll warn others about it now. This shit doesn't end well.
Why should people have to prove that they got things legally to the police?
Because of taxes. It's pretty standard practice.
Those aren't submitted to the police
So you're ok with people proving to the government that they got things legally and you just have an issue with which government representative does the checking? It's a valid complaint but personally I think it's a minor issue.
How is it a minor issue? There's a difference between a cop asking you to prove you own things and a government official asking you to file taxes. One is a member of a violent arm of the government which enforces laws and the other is a bureaucrat.
The government doesn't just ask you to file your taxes. They can investigate what you own and ask you to prove how you got it. They can use prosecutors and police to conduct searches and investigations. The police can also inform the bureaucrat that they suspect you're braking tax laws. And yes, if the police see someone carrying a bunch of catalytic converters they can stop them and ask to prove how they got them. You're talking about it like police investigating ownership is something new and dangerous while in reality it's pretty standard thing. They will investigate all sort of suspected activity and carrying large amounts of cash or often stolen items can be one of them. This "violent arm of the government" interacts with people all the time, pretending they are some kill squads that should not get close to people unless they have evidence of crime or something is silly.
They don't investigate people randomly.
People won't have to. Criminals though...
Criminals are people. To act otherwise or to reduce their rights is the wedge issue of tyrants.
How do you determine if someone is a criminal? Also, pretty sure the law in post applies to everyone.
All laws apply to everyone, but not everyone is subjected to them. If you don't have a drivers licence you're not subject to laws related to driving a car.
Everyone is subject to laws related to driving a car. They're not going to let you off the hook just because you don't have a licence.
Yeah, that was my point? The laws apply, but you will never have to think about them.
Idk man. I don't trust the cops to act in the interest of the people.
Get better cops? I might not trust every cop out there, but I trust that the system will hold them to the standard that we require from them. So far it seems to work here in the Nordics.
Good for you guys ig?
I'm sorry, but what exactly is the problem with that
And also I don't know what world you're living in where a β¬10k car is considered luxury (unless you're saying all cars are luxury, in which case we may have some common ground)
If a 20-something (or any-something, more importantly) has that money and they want to spend it, what's the problem
Why should someone be made a criminal for selling a car for cash
A 20 something walking into a shop with a duffel bag full of cash is definitely suspicious
Same with a 50 something walking into a car dealership with a briefcase full of cash. Or a 40 something buying a condo in Munich with cash. Something ain't right here.
And why exactly ?
Once I paid my fair share of taxes, what I do with my money is not your business (nor state's business).
If I want to withdraw money from the bank every month and keep under the sink until I have enough money to buy a home with cash I am free to do it. It is smart ? Probably not so much but it is not illegal either.
True but people at that age walking into places with that much cash are either white collar criminals or politicians and both are unfortunately more socially accepted than blue collar criminals.
Criminals use it to launder money. And it's not only β¬10k, it's β¬10k and above. So a 20 year old with no job or income comes into a dealership, buys an Audi RS3 for β¬80k in cash and we're all supposed to pretend that's fine?
If you have over β¬10k in cash and want to spend it, sure, go right ahead, but you'll need to prove where you got it from. Banks have a KYC requirements, put the money there and arrange for a bank transfer. It's not like cash is banned.
You won't be thanking them when a cop takes your shit because you don't have your papers.
They obviously go through the legal system so it's not confiscated forever if you can show that it's actually yours. This is a law designed to remove expensive items from gansters. If you're not doing shady shit you'll never have anything taken from you by the police.
Youre on a slippery slope