Tax revenues continued to rise in 2014 and the ratio of tax revenue to GDP in the EU remains the highest in a comparison to other advanced economies, a European Commission report published on Friday 11 November reveals.
In 2014, the ratio of tax and social contributions to GDP in the 28 member states of the EU stood at 38.8%, or nearly 13% of GDP more than the US and 8% more than Japan. The ratio is virtually the same for Iceland and Norway, whilst the Swiss ratio stands at 27%.
However, this upward tendency has been mixed in the Eurozone since 2010. The highest increases were observed in Denmark (2.8% of GDP). Cyprus (2.6), Malta (1.4). Ireland (0.9) and Slovakia (0.9). A number of countries have seen their tax revenue/GDP ratio fall. These were the Czech Republic (-0.7), the United Kingdom (-0.5) and Slovenia (-0.3).
The highest tax revenue/GDP ratios were recorded in Denmark (49.9), France (45.9) and Belgium (45.3), whilst the lowest were to be found in Bulgaria (27.8), Lithuania (27.7) and Romania (27.7).
The countries with the highest proportion of revenues from direct taxation are Denmark (67.4), Ireland, Malta, the United Kingdom and Sweden (between 40% and 50% of revenues). In certain other countries, revenues related to direct taxation are lower, but offset by indirect taxation (Bulgaria, Croatia and Hungary) or higher social contributions (Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Lithuania). (Original version in French by Élodie Lamer)