According to new figures from the OCED, the overall tax burden in Belgium has increased for the second successive year. In just 4 OECD is the tax burden as a share of the economy higher than it is in Belgium.
The tax burden measures all taxes collected by the government, including income tax, corporation tax, VAT and excise duties, as a percentage of GDP. Preliminary data from the OECD shows that in 2024 the overall tax burden in Belgium rose from 41.9% to 42.6% in 2024. In 2022, the overall tax burden stood at 41.6%. The latest figures show that of every 100 euro that is generated in the Belgian economy 42.60 euro is paid to the government in some for of tax.
The largest portion of tax revenue (30.8%) comes from social security contributions. Income tax accounts for 27.9% of the tax revenue generated, while VAT accounts for 15%. In 2023, the government collected 249.8 euro billion in taxes. This is 15.5 billion euro more than in 2022.
Of all the other OECD countries only Denmark (45.2%), France (43.5%), Austria (43.4%) and Italy (42.8%) have higher tax burdens. Across the OECD, the average tax burden rose from 33.7% to 34.1%. That is the highest level since the organisation began reporting on tax burden.
In its latest report, the OECD has slightly revised Belgium’s tax burden figures for 2022 and 2023 based on updated data.