Administrators of the largest brothel in Europe are upset at what they consider to be unjust taxation by the Austrian government; to that effect, they have resolved to stage a protest by means of “direct action.” Over the next few weeks, the Pascha brothel is not charging clients for sessions with prostitutes.

According to a news report filed by Oliver Papacek and Martina Prewein of the Kronen Zeitung daily tabloid in Austria (link in German), brothel keeper Hermann ‘Pascha’ Müller is offering free admission, free drinks and free sex to clients as a way to deny the revenue collector from getting his taxes. Herr Müller, who was born in Germany, mentioned to the Kronen Zeitung that he is tired of being the “tax collector’s pimp.”

The unusual protest by Herr Müller has been well-received by clients, who have arrived from across Europe in droves. Herr Müller explains that the municipality of Salzburg has failed to curb unlicensed prostitution, which takes place out in the street or at private residences in the city. This underground sex-for-hire economy undermines the lucrative profits realized by taxpayers such as Herr Müller, who estimates he has paid more than five million euros in taxes over the last decade.

As of June 10^th, journalists who visited the Pascha premises reported long lines outside the brothel. Herr Müller mentioned that despite the fact that his brothel is not collecting any income at this time, that has not stopped revenue collectors from visiting him as they do every 14 days without fail. Herr Müller continues to pay the prostitutes hourly wages plus the normal labor-related contributions, but he is not incurring into any tax liabilities at the moment. He owns other brothels, which are operating normally in order to offset losses at Pascha during this period of protest.

Similar to Costa Rica, prostitution in Austria is not considered a criminal act, but this European nation takes things further by making sex-for-money a government-sanctioned activity that requires certain licensing, health and revenue protocols. At any given time, more than 150 prostitutes -mostly women from around the world- work at Pascha. According to the Cronica news daily from Paraguay, some prostitutes at Pascha are from Costa Rica.