What does it cost in your country

Quote:

Originally posted by vlman

Dental is free, all through life..

ACT health covers your basic dental needs....you just have to wait months

Quote:

Originally posted by kyosho

well ofcourse you have to pay taxes to get something back.

I get about 2000 euros every month for what I do, from that goes away taxes, about 300 euros and union paymenths(optional), then I pay retirement allowance and other payments so that the system works for everybody. My tax % is now 17.5 that isn´t a big % my friends has 27%, ok he earns much more then I.

in germany if you are a single you have to pay 47% for taxes and stuff.

In Italy the average tax pressure is around 47%.
It varies from the no-tax zone and goes up to 55% for very high incomes.
We have free health treatment (you just pay some little tickets, from 5 to 20E, which you don't have to pay if you are poor). You can also go to privates, and they get subsidies from the state, in the amount of what the state would pay for public treatment.
School is free, although you are requested to pay some taxes if you go to University (I was paying around 1300E/year, due to my middle-high family income).
There are no many slots for lil kids nowadays, so many families have to rely on private kinder gardens.. but they modified the law and planning to fix this (we will see...)
We have lot of black money runnign around (expecially in the south), which means that many ppl are not paying taxes.. this reflects on the percentage of money they have to ask as tax.
With the current government, there was a push in fighting black money/market, so they are catching many ppl who didn't pay tax before, and more people is paying tax nowadays.. so we got a surplus the government is planning to use to subside poor families.
Situation is quite complex, due to lack of organization and cross-checking of incomes, so many ppl avoid paying taxes or they have lot of black incomes next to the declared ones.
But of course the situation couldn't get worse than with the previous Berlusconi government, with a big push in liberalization, which has translated in a drop of salaries (800E net / month as a programmer for 40h/week.. that was what I was getting!) and 40% drop of families' bank savings in 5 years...

social security tax
federal income tax
state income tax
9% sales tax
tobacco tax...$3/pack here
beer tax
property tax
gas tax
license tax

and the list goes on.

import tax
export tax
excise tax
unemployment tax
yadda yadda yadda


basically, all over the world we're all paying huge taxes & not getting much back for it. how many people here are getting rich on what they get to keep out of their paychecks each year???

not many, i'd guess....certainly not me....

az

Quote:

Originally posted by Canon9

It is very expensive to live in the U.S. Only about 45% of the people in the U.S. have health insurance. It is very wrong in my opinion. Companies have in the past provided health insurance for employees but that has changed dramatically in the past ten years. Special interest lobby groups representing the insurance companies and drug manufacturers have contributed greatly to politicians and effectively set up road blocks to insurance coverage for all and been allowed to increase charges dramatically. Who loses? During this same time the divorce rate has increased to about 50% making health insurance prohibitive to 55% of the American people.

Once again the people who don't work in the US don't get handed freebies It's capitalism, if you don't like it move to a more socialist state... And take the politics somewhere else...

I think we need to face facts here! it's possible to make more money in the u.k. then anywhere else in the world. If I was to move to the us (which i wont be anytime soon) my money would double because of the exchange rate. The best thing out government ever did was not join the euro. we pay between 20 - 30% taxes and for that we get health care and cheap dental care and everything else. If you want a better service than every1 else in the country you pay for everything out of your own pocket but for about 20% of the population thats possible. The average yearly wage in the u.k. is £25,000 thts equal to $50,000 US. Not to sure about every1 else

I have a few married friends where the wife worked but after having a kid it was far cheaper for her to quit and stay at home then to pay for daycare services. The total pay and then some exceeded her daycare billing! Gas is currently $2.73 a gallon here. If you buy a vehicle in my state you pay taxes on the full price of it or the price of a difference if you traded in one. The next year when the tags are due you pay taxes on it's value at that time again,etc.etc.! So to buy a new one is really a kick in the nuts! I have a clean record,no accidents and my pickup(2004) cost more to insure than my house,property and garage! I am the eldest at work and my health insurance is more than the owner,his wife and two kids combined. I am very thankful I have it even though I have a $3000.00 deductable. City sales tax at 7% right now,gas tax,cigarette tax(which needs to be about $90.00 per pack),tax on labor services,parts,about everything except food..so far! Most of my check goes to pay for those in my country illegally or not willing to work and provide for the system,or both. It sucks,but you know what,we do have some pretty valuable freedoms in this country even if it is upside down most of the time!
Now if we could just get people to accept public nudity.........

I was always under the impression that dental work was very expensive in the
UK. I must of been wrong.

I have 5 weeks of payed vacation every year
When I haved worked 11 years and that would be after a couple of years... I will enjoy a 7 week payed vacation

just checked what I earned and payed last year(2006):

Income: 23 463,24 euros

Taxes: 3996.00 euros
etc. payments(social etc.) 1473,69 euros

7 weeks paid vacation! Wow! You have a great deal.

I'd gladly trade with you.

The tax holiday in the US is April (4 months) and June in Canada (6 months) so I work half the year for direct and indirect taxation in order to provide various healthcare and governmental services to everyone else.

My daycare is just about as much as my house mortgage - around $1000/mo each. Sure there are cheaper daycares but there are a lot of reasons to spend a little more... ok, a lot more to get added benefits for your child. My son is a year and a half old and knows baby sign language. He can speak a handful of words but can communicate what he wants with sign language. That saves us and him from a lot of frustration!

holy crap.

No free day care.

Doctors - health insurance is at least 100 a month plus you have to pay when you go.

Dental no free ever. cavity 80, pull a tooth 40 or so. root canal 500+

I havent been to doctor in over 20 years. dentist I go about once every two years if that.

stop bringing govt policies up, specially when its not your govt....and use it to badmouth others

and on that, its funny how ignorant some people are when it comes to what they believe they know about other countries.

Due to the way government now pays dentists in England some dentists do not provide free dental care to children any more. My dentist has told me I must pay for my children's dental care. Needless to say I told him to fuck off.

Quote:

Originally posted by Latino

and on that, its funny how ignorant some people are when it comes to what they believe they know about other countries.

A lot of Americans don't even know how the American system works, I doubt to many of us know actual information about all the other countries.

Quote:

Originally posted by Canon9

It is very expensive to live in the U.S. Only about 45% of the people in the U.S. have health insurance. It is very wrong in my opinion. Companies have in the past provided health insurance for employees but that has changed dramatically in the past ten years. Special interest lobby groups representing the insurance companies and drug manufacturers have contributed greatly to politicians and effectively set up road blocks to insurance coverage for all and been allowed to increase charges dramatically. Who loses? During this same time the divorce rate has increased to about 50% making health insurance prohibitive to 55% of the American people. It is wrong! Our government has no problem spending 500 billion on a useless war in Iraq, paving their roads, building their schools and hospitals while turning their heads to the people that pay their taxes.

I would really like to know where you get your info from. In 2005, 45 million Americans were uninsured (story). That's only about 15% of america. The largest amount of uninsured live in Texas at 23.9%. So, please check your facts before you run your mouth and bash your home country again.

Quote:

Originally posted by Dagnabbit

A lot of Americans don't even know how the American system works, I doubt to many of us know actual information about all the other countries.

i meant from both sides..
i hate it when people think they know how a country their not part of works, and think their opinions or 'myths' actually mean something..

the question was to talk about YOUR country, not bitch about others

Quote:

Originally posted by Dagnabbit

In 2005, 45 million Americans were uninsured (story).

now that'd be a client potential for me

Good news for us Americans,well in my state anyway,it is now cheaper to be put in the ground then to be yanked out of the womb!