Text 8192, 48 rader
Skriven 2010-06-06 08:38:54 av Robert Bashe (2:2448/44)
   Kommentar till text 8111 av Michiel van der Vlist (2:280/5555)
Ärende: Bargeld lacht
=====================
Michiel van der Vlist wrote to Ward Dossche on Saturday June 05 2010 at 14:19:

MV> Case 1:

MV> Rosa and I are not married.

MV> When I die before she does, she inherites everything. Almost 50% will
MV> go to the tax collector. That means she will have to sell the house.
MV> Shan can not stay there.

Then the inheritance laws where you live are different from those in Germany. A
common-law wife (that's what you are referring to here) inherits _nothing_
unless there is a will to her benefit, and in Germany even then blood relatives
(nephews, nieces, cousins and the like) have more rights. A common-law wife
also pays higher inheritance taxes than a blood relative - but still nothing
like the 50% you mention.

MV> Case 2:

MV> Rosa and I are married.

MV> When I die before she does, she inherits everything. Almost nothing
MV> goes to the tax collector. There is enough left to pay off any
MV> remaining debts. She can keep the house and continue to live there for
MV> as long as she wants.

This would be similar to the case in Germany. In addition, she would be able to
collect a widow's pension from the government. There have been cases where
older men have married yiounger women pro forma for exactly this reason, to
make sure the women are provided for after their death.

A classic case was that of Herbert Wehner, an SPD member and long-term national
representative, who married his younger companion when he was in advanced years
and in poor health. As I remember, he even admitted one time that the purpose
of the marriage was to ensure that his wife would receive a widow's pension.

Something similar has apparently also happened in the case of Helmut Kohl, who
has married a much younger woman who cares for him, as he is in poor health.

MV> Those are the facts. No need to revert to beliefs to make a rational
MV> choice.

How true.

Cheers, Bob

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