EUROSTAT: Taxation trends in the European Union – 2012 edition

This report contains a detailed statistical and economic analysis of the tax systems of the Member States of the European Union, plus Iceland and Norway, which are Members of the European Economic Area. The data are presented within a unified statistical framework (the ESA95 harmonised system of national and regional accounts), which makes it possible to assess the heterogeneous national tax systems on a fully comparable basis.

The standard classifications of tax revenues (by major type of tax or by level of government) presented in most international tax revenue statistics are hard to interpret in economic terms. This publication stands out for offering a breakdown of tax revenues by economic function (i.e. according to whether they are raised on consumption, labour or capital). This classification is based on disaggregated tax data and on a breakdown of the revenue from the personal income tax. Besides revenue data, the report also contains indicators of the average effective tax rate falling on consumption, labour and capital, as well as data on environmental taxation and on the top rates for the personal and corporate income tax.

Country chapters give an overview of the tax system in each of the 29 countries covered, the revenue trends and the main recent policy changes. Detailed tables allow comparison between the individual countries and European averages. Data cover the 1995-2010 period and are presented both as a percentage of GDP and as a percentage of total taxation.

The 2012 edition of the report presents for the first time data on property taxation, an area of taxation with high policy relevance, for which until now no harmonised data were published for all EU Member States.

– Eurostat Press release: STAT/12/77
– Presentation
– Booklet
– Full Text
– Country chapters
– Annex A: tables
– Revenue data by individual tax
– Methodology
– Previous editions can also be downloaded free of charge.