The Crazy Story of This Heiress Who Refused a 25 Million Euro Inheritance Because She Doesn't Pay Enough Taxes

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While the accumulation of wealth is often considered an end in itself, Marlene Engelhorn, a 31-year-old Austro-German heiress, is shaking up the codes . This descendant of the founder of the pharmaceutical giant BASF has decided to redistribute 25 million euros of her inheritance, not out of simple philanthropy, but to denounce the absence of inheritance tax in her country.

“I inherited a fortune, and therefore power, without having done anything for it”, she declares with disarming frankness. This position is not new for Marlene Engelhorn, who had already announced even before her grandmother's death in 2022 that she wanted to redistribute around 90% of her inheritance.

Austria is one of the few European countries to have abolished inheritance tax in 2008. A situation that this committed young woman considers profoundly unfair, while inequalities are widening and the poverty rate in the country is close to historic records with 14.80% of the population concerned.

An unprecedented redistribution

Rather than simply making donations to associations or creating a foundation, Marlene Engelhorn has imagined a unique process. She is setting up a “Citizens' Council&#8221 composed of 50 Austrians, selected from 10,000 people drawn at random.

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This council, called “Guter Rat für Rückverteilung” (Good Council for Redistribution), met over six weekends between March and June 2024 to collectively decide how to use the €25 million. The heiress herself had no influence on the decisions taken, pushing her logic of democratizing wealth to its conclusion.

This initiative goes far beyond a simple philanthropic gesture. In a country where the richest 1% owns 50% of the national wealth, Marlene Engelhorn denounces what she calls the “lottery of birth”. She points to a system that allows some to be born “straight into the boss's chair” while others will never have access to the same opportunities.

Her action came in a particular political context: the Austrian Social Democrats were campaigning for the reinstatement of the inheritance tax, even making it a potential condition for future coalition negotiations after last year's general election.

• A 31-year-old Austrian heiress decides to redistribute 25 million euros of her inheritance
• She sets up a citizens' council of 50 people to democratically decide how to use this money
• Her action aims to denounce the absence of inheritance tax in Austria and growing inequalities

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