Deutsche Post denies tax overcharge

German postal and logistics services group Deutsche Post denied a press report on Friday that it had been making as much as 45 million marks ($11.25 million) a month by charging clients too much tax. A report in the Germany daily Bild Zeitung said the Post had for years been charging clients a sales tax it was not required to collect or pay to the government. Deutsche Post said in a statement its role as a public service provider meant that some letters were not subject to sales tax according to European Union and German law. ‘But for commercial packages Deutsche Post charges its clients sales tax, just as its competitors do,’ the statement said. The German government said last week that the Post would continue to enjoy exemption from sales tax on certain letters until 2007 amid fears the audit office might call for a tax increase for the group.