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European Tax Maps

Providing journalists, taxpayers and policymakers with basic data on taxes and spending is a cornerstone of the Tax Foundation’s educational mission. We’ve found that one of the best, most engaging ways to do that is by visualizing tax data in the form of maps.

How does your country collect revenue? Every week, we release a new tax map that illustrates one important measure of tax rates, collections, burdens and more.

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Reduced Corporate Income Tax Rates for Small Businesses in Europe 2021

Reduced Corporate Income Tax Rates for Small Businesses in Europe

Corporate income taxes are commonly levied as a flat rate on business profits. However, some countries provide reduced corporate income tax rates for small businesses. Out of 27 European OECD countries covered in today’s map, eight levy a reduced corporate tax rate on businesses that have revenues or profits below a certain threshold.

3 min read
2021 Carbon Taxes in Europe Which European Countries have a carbon European Countries have a carbon tax Sweden

Carbon Taxes in Europe, 2021

In recent years, several countries have taken measures to reduce carbon emissions, including instituting environmental regulations, emissions trading systems (ETS), and carbon taxes.

2 min read
Tax Relief for Families in Europe 2021 countries provide tax relief for families vs single worker without children

Tax Relief for Families in Europe

Most countries provide tax relief to families with children—typically through targeted tax breaks that lower income taxes. While all European OECD countries provide tax relief for families, its extent varies substantially across countries.

2 min read
Top statutory personal income tax rates in Europe 2021

Top Personal Income Tax Rates in Europe, 2021

Most countries’ personal income taxes have a progressive structure, meaning that the tax rate paid by individuals increases as they earn higher wages. The highest tax rate individuals pay differs significantly across Europe, with Denmark (55.9 percent), France (55.4 percent), and Austria (55 percent) having the highest top statutory personal income tax rates among European OECD countries.

3 min read
Estate taxes in Europe, Estate tax inheritance tax Gift taxes in Europe EU European Union 2021

Estate, Inheritance, and Gift Taxes in Europe, 2021

Estate tax is levied on the property of the deceased and is paid by the estate itself. Inheritance taxes, in contrast, are only levied on the value of assets transferred and are paid by the heirs. Gift taxes are levied when property is transferred by a living individual. The majority of European countries covered in today’s map currently levy estate, inheritance, or gift taxes.

3 min read
Inventory Valuation Method in Europe 2021, First-in, First-out (FIFO); Last-in, First-out (LIFO);

Inventory Valuation in Europe

The method by which a country allows businesses to account for inventories can significantly impact a business’s taxable income. When prices are rising, as is usually the case due to factors like inflation, LIFO is the preferred method because it allows inventory costs to be closer to true costs at the time of sale.

2 min read
2021 corporate tax rates in Europe, 2021 corporate income tax rates in Europe, 2021 corporate taxes in Europe, 2021 corporate tax rates in Europe

Corporate Income Tax Rates in Europe, 2021

On average, European OECD countries currently levy a corporate income tax rate of 21.7 percent. This is below the worldwide average which, measured across 177 jurisdictions, was 23.9 percent in 2020.

2 min read
Bank Taxes in Europe 2021 Bank Tax, financial stability contributions, 2008 financial crisis tax

Bank Taxes in Europe

Today’s map shows which European OECD countries implemented financial stability contributions (FSCs), commonly referred to as “bank taxes.”

2 min read
Property taxes in Europe 2021 reliance on property tax revenue in Europe, 2021 property tax rates in Europe

Reliance on Property Taxes in Europe

Property taxes are levied on the assets of an individual or business. There are different types of property taxes, with recurrent taxes on immovable property (such as property taxes on land and buildings) the only ones levied by all countries covered. Other types of property taxes include estate, inheritance, and gift taxes, net wealth taxes, and taxes on financial and capital transactions.

1 min read
Consumption taxes in Europe, reliance on consumption taxes in Europe, reliance on consumption tax revenue in Europe, taxes on goods and services in Europe

Reliance on Consumption Taxes in Europe

Hungary relies the most on consumption tax revenue, at 45.3 percent of total tax revenue, followed by Latvia and Estonia at 45.1 percent and 42.4 percent, respectively.

2 min read
Reliance on individual income tax revenue in Europe 2019

Reliance on Individual Income Tax Revenue in Europe

Denmark relies the most on revenue from individual income taxes, at 52.4 percent of total tax revenue, followed by Iceland and Ireland at 40.8 percent and 31.5 percent, respectively.

1 min read
Reliance on corporate tax revenue in Europe 2021 reliance on corporate income taxes in Europe how much do countries in europe rely on corporate income taxes? revenue from corporate income

Reliance on Corporate Income Tax Revenue in Europe

Despite declining corporate income tax rates over the last 30 years in Europe (and other parts of the world), average revenue from corporate income taxes as a share of total tax revenue has not changed significantly compared to 1990.

1 min read
2021 financial transaction taxes in Europe, 2021 financial transaction tax Europe. European OECD countries impose a type of FTT.

Financial Transaction Taxes in Europe

Belgium, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom currently levy a type of financial transaction tax

2 min read
Value-added taxes (VAT) make up approximately one-fifth of total tax revenues in Europe. Actionable VAT Policy Gap in Europe

Actionable VAT Policy Gap in Europe

Value-added taxes (VAT) make up approximately one-fifth of total tax revenues in Europe. However, European countries differ significantly in how efficiently they raise VAT revenues. One way to measure a country’s VAT efficiency is the VAT Gap.

3 min read
R&D tax incentives, Research and development tax incentives, R&D tax subsidies and R&D tax subsidy policies in Europe

Tax Subsidies for R&D Expenditures in Europe, 2021

Many countries incentivize business investment in research and development (R&D), intending to foster innovation. A common approach is to provide direct government funding for R&D activity. However, a significant number of jurisdictions also offer R&D tax incentives.

4 min read
Integrated Tax Rates on Corporate Income in Europe, Top Integrated Tax Rates on Corporate Income Distributed as Dividends in European OECD Countries, 2020

Integrated Tax Rates on Corporate Income in Europe

The integrated tax rate on corporate income reflects both the corporate income tax and the dividends or capital gains tax—the total tax levied on corporate income. For dividends, Ireland’s top integrated tax rate was highest among European OECD countries, followed by France and Denmark

3 min read
2021 Value-Added Tax Rates in Europe, 2021 VAT rates in Europe

VAT Rates in Europe, 2021

More than 140 countries worldwide—including all European countries—levy a Value-Added Tax (VAT) on goods and services.

4 min read