[Avodah] Tax Evasion and Esrog purchasing

[Micha Berger via Avodah]

Back in Sep 2014 <http://www.aishdas.org/avodah/vol31/v31n164.shtml#11<
I wrote:
> Every year I mention the problem of buying an esrog from someone who
> offers a better price if you pay in cash. Last year I was able to shift
> from "li nir'eh it's a problem". RHSchachter reports that according to
> RJBSoloveitchik, helping the seller evade taxes in this way is lifnei iver
> (deOraisa, not "just" the derabbanan of mesayeia) and THE ESROG IS PASUL.

They just put R' Asher Weiss's teshuvah on this subject up at
<http://en.tvunah.org/2017/08/25/paying-in-cash>:

    Tvunah in English

    Question: I recently went to a store and was told if a pay in cash
    then i would not need to pay taxes. If it is obvious that by me
    paying in taxes the store owner would not pay the proper tax on
    this sale to the government, am I allowed to do such a purchase or
    there is a problem of [lifnei iveir lo sisein mikhshol].
    
    Answer: This would not seem to be the actual prohibition of Lifnei
    Iver as cash payment is inherently permissible and he can and
    may still pay taxes. There are a number of reasons a person would
    prefer cash payments, aside from tax evasion. At the same time,
    with regards to taxes we should generally assume Dina Demalchusa
    Dina and not encourage or promote tax evasion.

It would seem RAW agrees on the halakhah, but disagrees that you should be
chosheish that the preference for cash is due to tax evasion.

Although in the first sentence the sho'el says the salesman told him
so outright!?

:-)BBii!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             When a king dies, his power ends,
micha at aishdas.org        but when a prophet dies, his influence is just
http://www.aishdas.org   beginning.
Fax: (270) 514-1507                    - Soren Kierkegaard