I've been off the planet for a few days. It seems to me that all of you who thought the non-payment of tax in the past was a loophole are mistaken. You were obliged to pay taxes the moment you set foot in Berlin/Wherever. It was your responsibility to contact the local authorities and begin paying tax as soon as your first pay check arrived. If you are only being asked to pay from Jan. 1st 2007 then consider yourselves very lucky. Even more lucky if you have been there a year or two or maybe even more. As for your German colleagues who have also been benefiting from this situation, if they are exempt all their unpaid taxes from the time they joined EZY I will be most surprised!