| European countries in order of highest taxes as % of GDP, 1995 | ||||||||
| Rank | Country | Taxes and SSC as % of GDP | Indirect | |||||
| All Taxes | Taxes | SSC | costs % | |||||
| and SSC | Hsehlds | Corps | Employee | Employer | labour | |||
| 198 | 1995 | 1995 | 1995 | 1994 | 1994 | costs | ||
| 1. | Denmark | 49 | 51 | 30 | 3 | 1.7 | 0 | 3 |
| 2. | Sweden | 50 | 50 | 20 | 3 | 1 | 13 | .. |
| 3. | Belgium | 45 | 46 | 15 | 3 | 7 | 9 | 29 |
| 4. | Finland | 43 | 46 | 17 | 1 | 4 | 12 | .. |
| 5. | Luxemburg | 50* | 46 | .. | .. | .. | .. | 16 |
| 6. | France | 44 | 45 | 7 | 2 | 7 | 12 | 31 |
| 7. | Netherlands | 45 | 44 | 11 | 4 | 17 | 3 | 26 |
| 8. | Austria | 41 | 42 | 12 | 2 | 3 | 10 | .. |
| 9. | Greece | 34 | 42** | 4 | 4 | .. | .. | 20 |
| 10. | Norway | 42 | 42 | 13 | 4 | .. | .. | .. |
| 11. | Germany | 41 | 39 | 10 | 2 | 9 | 8 | 23 |
| 12. | Ireland | 36 | 35 | .. | .. | .. | .. | 18 |
| 13. | UK | 36 | 35 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 14 |
| 14. | Switzerland | 31 | 34 | 13 | 1 | 7 | 4 | .. |
| 15. | Spain | 35 | 34 | .. | .. | .. | .. | 25 |
| 16. | Portugal | .. | 34 | .. | .. | .. | .. | 26 |
| 17. | Canada | 35 | 36** | 15 | 3 | 1 | 5 | .. |
| 18. | Australia | 31 | 31 | 12 | 4 | .. | .. | .. |
| 19. | USA | 29 | 32** | 11 | 3 | 3** | 4** | .. |
| 20. | Japan | 30 | 28 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 5 | .. |
| Notes: SSC = Social Security Contributions; Hsehld = Household; Corp. = corporation.
* = 1989. ** = 1994.
Indirect costs = statutory and non-statutory social security, vocational training and other non-wage services to employees. | ||||||||
| Sources: Taxes and Social Security Contributions, from CSO, Economic Trends, November 1996, pp. 21-24. Indirect costs from EUROSTAT. Social Portrait of Europe, 1997, p.110. | ||||||||