BERLIN, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- Around nine out of 10 German households that use a domestic helper employ them illegally, according to a report released Tuesday by the German Economic Institute (IW).
The practice involves roughly four million households across the country, said the institute, revealing a large shadow market for cleaning and other household services in Germany, driven by a mix of factors.
According to the survey, about 15 percent of respondents cited cost concerns, saying legal employment would be too expensive, while another 8 percent blamed bureaucratic barriers.
The most common reason, cited by nearly 35 percent, was the belief that such work amounts to "neighborly assistance" and therefore does not require registration.
The institute estimated that domestic helpers employed illegally or on a "mini-job" basis typically cost between 15 and 25 euros (about 17.63-29.41 U.S. dollars) per hour.
Based on those rates, the institute calculated that households paid an estimated 8.63 billion euros for regular or occasional domestic help that was not taxed in 2023, a sum it said was likely to have increased further by 2025. (1 euro = 1.18 U.S. dollar) ■