Cyprus saw the largest increase of the ratio of taxes to GDP among EU member states in 2023 (compared to 2022), according to data released by Eurostat, the statistical service of the European Union. The ratio for Cyprus remained below the EU average, which in itself had decreased slightly during the same period.

The overall tax-to-GDP ratio, meaning the sum of taxes and net social contributions as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP), stood at 40.0% in the EU in 2023, a decrease compared with 2022 (40.7%). In the eurozone, the tax-to-GDP ratio also decreased from 41.4% in 2022 to 40.6% in 2023.

Among member states, the tax-to-GDP ratio increased in 2023 compared with 2022 in 11 EU countries, with the largest increases being observed in Cyprus (from 35.9% in 2022 to 38.8% in 2023) and Luxembourg (40.2% in 2022 and 42.8% in 2023).

In contrast, decreases of more than 0.1 percentage points of GDP were recorded in 12 EU countries, with the largest decreases noted in Greece (from 42.8% in 2022 to 40.7% in 2023) and France (from 47.6% in 2022 to 45.6% in 2023).

In absolute terms, in 2023, revenue from taxes and social contributions increased by 308 billion euro in the EU compared with 2022, to stand at 6.883 trillion euro.

The tax-to-GDP ratio varied significantly between EU countries in 2023, with the highest shares of taxes and social contributions as a percentage of GDP being recorded in France (45.6%), Belgium (44.8%) and Denmark (44.1%).

At the opposite end of the scale, Ireland (22.7%), Romania (27.0%) and Malta (27.1%) registered the lowest ratios.