Environment taxes make up 6.3% of global EU taxes

6.3% of tax revenues came from environmental taxes in the EU in 2013, energy biggest contributor

25 November 2015, 11:39am
by Staff Reporter

1 min read

Taxes on energy made up 77% of total environmental taxes

EU environmental taxes in 2013 amounted to €330 billion, an increase of some €28 billion compared to ten years earlier.

However, the share of environment taxes in total revenues from taxes and social contributions decreased over this 10-year period, from 6.9% in 2003 to 6.3% in 2013.

The share of environmental taxes in total revenues from taxes and social contributions is an indicator of the flagship initiative for a resource-efficient Europe under the Europe 2020 strategy. The objective to be reached is at least a 10% share for the EU by 2020.

Eurostat statistics show that taxes on energy (77% of total environmental taxes) made up more than three-quarters of the total revenue from environmental taxes in the EU, well ahead of taxes on transport (20%) and those on pollution and resources (3%).