Property taxes across Europe are becoming an increasingly hot topic, not only for their role in filling state budgets but also for their impact on housing markets.
According to European Commission data for 2023, the share of property taxes in GDP varied widely—from just 0.3 percent in the Czech Republic and Estonia to 3.7 percent in France. The EU average stood at 1.9 percent. When looking more broadly at EFTA countries, the UK, and Turkey, Britain and France topped the list, each with 3.7 percent, followed by Belgium at 3.2 percent and Spain at 2.5 percent.
Croatia Around the EU Average
In absolute terms, the UK led the way with €115 billion collected in 2023, followed by France with €104.5 billion. Italy came third with €45.3 billion, ahead of Germany (€41.4 billion) and Spain (€36.8 billion). Across the EU, property taxes generated €318.8 billion in revenue last year.
Croatia sits in the middle of the European spectrum, with property taxes accounting for about 1 percent of its GDP—similar to Germany, but well below France or Belgium. Since this year, Croatia has also introduced a broader property tax to replace the former tax on holiday homes, extending the levy to buildings used for short-term tourist rentals.
Different Approaches Across Europe
When measured as a share of total tax revenue, property taxes ranged from 0.8 percent in the Czech Republic and Estonia to 8.4 percent in France, with the EU average at 4.7 percent. Besides France, high ratios were seen in Belgium (7.4%), Greece (7%), Spain (6.7%), Portugal (5.9%), and Luxembourg (5.7%). Germany remained on the low end with just 2.5 percent.
A significant segment of property taxation comes from transfer taxes on real estate transactions. Italy leads this category, collecting the equivalent of 1 percent of GDP, while Croatia levies a 3 percent transfer tax on property purchases—an important source of income for local municipalities.