In Norway Stripping Is an Art Form

Posted on Dec 6, 2006

An appeals court in Norway ruled in favor of the owners of a go-go bar in Oslo who had refused to pay taxes on entry fees on the grounds that striptease dancers are stage artists like sword swallowers and comedians and deserve the same status.  According to the BBC report, the court ruled that “[s]triptease, in the way it is practised in this case, is a form of dance combined with acting” and should be exempt from the value-added tax.

BBC:

The owners of the Diamond Go Go Bar in Oslo had refused to pay VAT of 25% on entry fees as tax authorities demanded.

The local authority had taken the club to court over its refusal to pay tax.

Lawyers for the club’s owners argued that striptease dancers were stage artists just like sword-swallowers and comedians and deserved the same status.

“Striptease, in the way it is practised in this case, is a form of dance combined with acting,” the judges ruled, according to AFP news agency.

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