René Benko leads a luxurious life – he claims the costs as operating expenses and therefore pays hardly any taxes.
Green MP Nina Tomaselli knew she wouldn’t get an answer from Thomas Schmid. That is why she used her speaking time in the University committee elsewhere. The focus was on a list of Benko’s tax treats—that is, those luxury goods that the real estate juggler wrote off with the necessary chutzpah as a business expense from taxes. The IRS has been extraordinarily generous with Benko, as she is often finicky in dealing with the petty taxpayer.
Schmid invited to hunt
An absolute highlight is Benko’s 62 meter long luxury yacht. “Between 2008 and 2011, Benko deducted 4.6 million euros in operating expenses.” Schmid was also invited on this yacht. He was silent about it in the U-committee.
That’s not all. Between 2008 and 2011, costs of more than one million euros for the luxury residence on Lake Garda were recorded as operating expenses. “It’s used as a private home,” Tomaselli says.
Hunting equipment and wine cellar as business expenses
Signa Holding also didn’t shy away from tax deducting hunting gear or costs for a wine cellar as operating expenses. 100,000 euros was written off for hunting equipment and 68,000 for the wine cellar.
In Vienna, Benko lives in a 600 square meter penthouse with a 450 square meter terrace in the city center. The Benko Private Foundation leases the luxury real estate to Signa Holding. The rent was recorded as operating expense.
Source: Krone
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