Eight in ten Italians chose the
Catholic Church as the recipient of a compulsory donation from
their annual income tax.
The church will receive more than one billion euros after
it was selected by 80% of the 18,929,945 taxpayers in the
country in 2011. The money will be paid to the church this year.
Under an Italian law known as the 'eight per thousand',
taxpayers can choose whom to give a compulsory 0.8% from their
annual income tax.
Italians are able to choose between an organised religion
or a social assistance scheme run by the state.
Some 15% of people gave their contribution, worth 195
million euros, to the state, while the Waldensian Evangelical
Church received $40.2 million.
Other recipients include the Jewish Community (5.8
million), the Lutheran Evangelical Church (4.1 million), the
Seventh-Day Adventist Church (2.4 million)and the Assemblies of
God in Italy (1.5 million).
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