Providing journalists, taxpayers, and policymakers with basic data on taxes and spending is a cornerstone of Tax Foundation Europe’s educational mission.
As a nonpartisan, educational organization, the Tax Foundation has earned a reputation for independence and credibility.
Our policy team regularly provides accessible, data-driven insights from sources such as the European Commission, the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), and others.
Featured Data
Top Personal Income Tax Rates in Europe, 2024
Denmark (55.9 percent), France (55.4 percent), and Austria (55 percent) have the highest top statutory personal income tax rates among European OECD countries.
3 min readVAT Rates in Europe, 2024
A few European countries have made changes to their VAT rates, including the Czech Republic, Estonia, Switzerland, and Turkey.
3 min readCorporate Income Tax Rates in Europe, 2024
Like most regions around the world, European countries have experienced a decline in corporate income tax rates over the past four decades, but the average corporate income tax rate has leveled off in recent years.
2 min readReal Property Taxes in Europe
High property taxes levied not only on land but also on buildings and structures can discourage investment in infrastructure, which businesses would have to pay additional tax on.
2 min readTax Burden on Labor in Europe
To make the taxation of labor more efficient, policymakers should understand the inputs into the tax wedge, and taxpayers should understand how their tax burden funds government services.
3 min readCarbon Taxes in Europe
In recent years, several countries have taken measures to reduce carbon emissions, including instituting environmental regulations, emissions trading systems, and carbon taxes. In 1990, Finland was the world’s first country to introduce a carbon tax.
4 min readAll European Tax Data
Integrated Tax Rates on Corporate Income in Europe
In most European OECD countries, corporate income is taxed twice, once at the entity level and once at the shareholder level.
3 min readTax Burden on Labor in Europe
To make the taxation of labor more efficient, policymakers should understand the inputs into the tax wedge, and taxpayers should understand how their tax burden funds government services.
3 min readWealth Taxes in Europe, 2023
Instead of reforming and hiking the wealth tax, perhaps policymakers should consider whether the tax is serving its intended objectives, and, if not, consider repealing the tax altogether.
4 min readEstate, Inheritance, and Gift Taxes in Europe, 2023
As tempting as inheritance, estate, and gift taxes might look—especially when the OECD notes them as a way to reduce wealth inequality—their limited capacity to collect revenue and their negative impact on entrepreneurial activity, saving, and work should make policymakers consider their repeal instead of boosting them.
3 min readTax Subsidies for R&D Expenditures in Europe
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 offers R&D tax incentives.
3 min readDividend Tax Rates in Europe, 2022
In many countries, corporate profits are subject to two layers of taxation: the corporate income tax at the entity level when the corporation earns income, and the dividend tax or capital gains tax at the individual level when that income is passed to its shareholders as either dividends or capital gains.
3 min readCapital Gains Tax Rates in Europe, 2023
In many countries, investment income, such as dividends and capital gains, is taxed at a different rate than wage income. Denmark levies the highest top capital gains tax of all countries covered, at a rate of 42 percent. Norway levies the second-highest top capital gains tax at 37.8 percent. Finland and France follow, at 34 percent each.
4 min readTop Personal Income Tax Rates in Europe, 2023
Denmark (55.9 percent), France (55.4 percent), and Austria (55 percent) have the highest top statutory personal income tax rates among European OECD countries.
2 min readCorporate Income Tax Rates in Europe, 2023
Taking into account central and subcentral taxes, Portugal has the highest corporate tax rate in Europe at 31.5 percent, followed by Germany and Italy at 29.8 percent and 27.8 percent, respectively
2 min readVAT Rates in Europe, 2023
The EU countries with the highest standard VAT rates are Hungary (27 percent), Croatia, Denmark, and Sweden (all at 25 percent). Luxembourg levies the lowest standard VAT rate at 16 percent, followed by Malta (18 percent), Cyprus, Germany, and Romania (all at 19 percent).
4 min readActionable 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 readComparing Europe’s Tax Systems: Individual Taxes
France’s individual income tax system is the least competitive among OECD countries. France’s top marginal tax rate of 45.9 percent is applied at 14.7 times the average national income. Additionally, a 9.7 surtax is applied to those at the upper end of the income distribution. Capital gains and dividends are both taxed at comparably high top rates of 34 percent.
2 min readComparing Europe’s Tax Systems: Corporate Taxes
According to the corporate tax component of the 2022 International Tax Competitiveness Index, Latvia and Estonia have the best corporate tax systems in the OECD.
3 min readWhat European Countries Are Doing about Windfall Profit Taxes
It’s unlikely these implemented and proposed windfall taxes will achieve their goals of addressing high gas and energy prices and raising additional revenues. They would more likely raise prices, penalize domestic production, and punitively target certain industries without a sound tax base.
9 min readNet Operating Loss Carryforward and Carryback Provisions in Europe
Carryover tax provisions help businesses “smooth” their risk and income, making the tax code more neutral across investments and over time.
3 min readInflation and Europe’s Personal Income Taxes
With continued concerns over inflation, individuals may be wondering how their tax bills will be impacted. Less than half of OECD countries in Europe automatically adjust income tax brackets for inflation every year.
2 min readPatent Box Regimes in Europe
Patent box regimes (also referred to as intellectual property, or IP, regimes) provide lower effective tax rates on income derived from IP. Most commonly, eligible types of IP are patents and software copyrights. Currently, 13 of the 27 EU member states have a patent box regime.
3 min readDigital Services Taxes in Europe, 2022
About half of all European OECD countries have either announced, proposed, or implemented a digital services tax.
4 min readBeer Taxes in Europe
’Tis the season to crack open a cold one. Ahead of International Beer Day on August 5th, let’s take a minute to discover how much of your cash is actually going toward the cost of a brew with this week’s tax map, which explores excise duties on beer.
3 min readGas Taxes in Europe
The Netherlands has the highest gas tax in the European Union, at €0.82 per liter ($3.69 per gallon). Italy applies the second highest rate at €0.73 per liter ($3.26 per gallon), followed by Finland at €0.72 per liter ($3.24 per gallon).
4 min read