Taxation as a percentage of the overall economy of the European Union fell slightly in 2004 to 40.7% of gross domestic product, down from 40.9% in 2003.
However, the latest figures from the European Union's statistical office Eurostat continue to show wide variations in national tax burdens, with the Nordic countries the most heavily taxed.
In 2004 Sweden (51.2%) recorded the highest ratio, followed by Denmark (49.9%), Belgium (47.4%), France (45.3%), Finland (44.5%) and Austria (44.3%).
The lowest ratios were observed in Lithuania (28.7%), Latvia (29.1%), Slovakia (30.6%), Ireland (31.7%), Estonia (32.7%) and Cyprus (33.7%).
In 2004, as compared with 2003, tax revenue as a proportion of GDP rose in fourteen Member States, fell in ten and remained stable in Sweden.
The highest increases in the tax-to-GDP ratio were recorded in Malta (from 34.5% in 2003 to 36.7% in 2004), Ireland (from 30.4% to 31.7%) and Denmark (from 48.7% to 49.9%).
The largest reductions were observed in Greece (from 39.0% to 37.7%), Germany (from 41.0% to 40.0%) and Italy (from 43.0% to 42.1%).
The figures also showed that the structure of taxation continues to vary considerably between Member States. For example, the highest ratios of taxes on income and wealth to GDP in 2004 were recorded in Denmark (30.0%), Sweden (19.4%) and Finland (17.8%). The lowest ratios were seen in Slovakia (6.1%), Poland (6.7%) and Latvia (8.0%). The EU average was 12.5%.
The highest ratios of taxes on production and imports to GDP in 2004 were noted in Denmark (17.7%), Cyprus (17.2%) and Sweden (17.1%). The lowest ratios were recorded in Lithuania (11.3%), the Czech Republic and Germany (both 12.0%). The EU average was 13.8%.
For actual social contributions, the highest ratios to GDP were observed in Germany (16.8%), France (16.3%) and the Czech Republic (15.1%), compared to an EU25 average of 13.1%, whereas Denmark (1.2%), Ireland (4.6%) and Malta (6.9%) recorded the lowest ratios. Denmark's social security system is, in fact, almost exclusively financed by general taxation.
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