Feb 3, 2012

German Sex Meters

The German city of Bonn is calling its policy of levying a surcharge on streetwalking prostitutes via curb-side meters a success that would continue.

The municipal government said a "sex tax" covering levies on sauna clubs, "erotic centers" and automated pay stations similar to parking meters that were rolled out in August 2011 had brought in around $326,000 last year.

The former West German capital became the first city in Germany to introduce the meters for sex workers as a means of extending a general tax on prostitution beyond brothels to the streets of Bonn.

The meters were installed in an industrial area near the center of town used by prostitutes to solicit clients, with each sex worker paying €6 per night worked, regardless of how many customers they have. Those repeatedly caught without a ticket can be fined.