The GEZ

Germany is a relatively benign place to live for badly organised Brits like me. For example you get ten years grace before you have to fill in a tax form, which may surprise for those who think we are a socialist collective. I don’t have to file this years tax forms until 2016. The health insurance companies, town hall, driving license department and other organisations are usually local, friendly and willing to oblige if you don’t interrupt their cigarette break.

But there is always one, and here it is the GEZ. The GEZ is the central TV and radio licensing authority in Germany, and everyone loathes it. This is fair because as far as I can tell, the GEZ hates everyone else. I once made the mistake of registering a radio with the GEZ. I got rid of it a couple of months later because of the prices they charge, but it was eight months before I finally got them to acknowledge the fact. Since then we’ve never had a radio or TV in the building. I still received snotty letters every six months or so.

And now it looks as if this won’t be enough. The GEZ has finally been allowed to charge for Internet use, amid howls of anger from just about everyone else in the country. Computers can now be used to listen to radio or TV over the internet, and the GEZ is having kittens at the thought that people may be doing this- shock horror- for nothing.

So from Jan 1^st 2007 I have to pay them €20 a month per computer for an Internet connection that costs about €20 already, to pay for a service I don’t want to use. I’ve emailed and asked if we come under this rule because our income is fairly low. They sent a letter saying that I had to pay, and by the way, in future please include your GEZ account number.

I told them I didn’t have a GEZ number (Owing to not having a TV or radio, etc), and pointed out that many self employed people are likely to find it hard to pay €200 a year for every computer they have. Was there a different rate for self employed people? Or I suggested, should we just sign on as unemployed and have done with it? A little sarcastic perhaps, but there we go.

They responded: If you apply for unemployment money you won’t have to pay the GEZ License fee.

Right... Well, there's always one. I'm just thankfull most of Germany doesn't act the same way