| Country | Standard Rate |
Reduce Rate for Certain Tax Categories |
| Australia | 10.0 |
0% basic food, exports, transportation, health, education, childcare, charity, central and local government services |
| Austria | 20.0 |
10% food, books, newspapers, private rents |
| Belarus | 20.0 |
|
| Belgium | 21.0 |
12% coal 6% food, books, services, gold 1% |
| Canada | 7.0 |
15% goods and service tax, harmonized sales tax |
| Czech Republic | 22.0 |
5% food and most services |
| Denmark | 25.0 |
0% passenger transport, financial transactions |
| Estonia | 18.0 |
9% books, newspapers, medicine, healthcare
equipment, heating 5% theaters, concerts 0% schoolbooks, subscribed newspapers & magazines, insurance & financial service, tourism, theaters & concerts, energy from wind & water, stamps etc. |
| Finland | 22.0 |
17% food 8% medicine, books, passenger transport, accommodations, cultural entertainment, sports events 0% subscribed newspaper |
| France | 19.6 |
7% books, culture 5.5% food, electricity 2.1% newspaper, medicine |
| Georgia | 20.0 |
|
| Germany | 16.0 |
7% food, books, newspapers |
| Greece | 18.0 |
8% food |
| Hungary | 25.0 |
12% food, medicine 0% pharmaceutical products |
| Iceland | 24.5 |
14% certain food, Icelandic books, hotel rooms |
| Ireland | 21.0 |
12.5% fuel, restaurants, constructions 4% cattle 0% food, books, children cloths |
| Italy | 20.0 |
10% or 4% specific products |
| Japan | 5.0 |
0% medical treatment, certain financial transactions |
| Kazakhstan | 15.0 |
|
| Korea | 10.0 |
0% unprocessed food and agricultural products, books, newspapers, magazines, education, culture, medicine, medical and health services, services, water, coal, passenger transports, postage, duty-exempt importation |
| Kyrgyzstan | 20.0 |
|
| Latvia | 18.0 |
|
| Lithuania | 18.0 |
9% heating 5% passenger transports 0% education, books, newspapers, magazine, medicine & medical treatment, rents, construction, insurance, financial services., post office, int. travel & transportation |
| Luxembourg | 15.0 |
12% fuel, wine, tobacco 6% gas, electricity 3% food, children cloths, books, newspapers, medicine, water supply |
| Netherlands | 19.0 |
6% food, certain services |
| New Zealand | 12.5 |
0% exports, transports, rents, financial services, duty free goods |
| Norway | 24.0 |
12% food 11.11% certain fish-sales |
| Poland | 22.0 |
7% processed food 3% unprocessed food |
| Portugal | 19.0 |
12% food industry, canned food 5% books, newspapers, medicine, hotels, transportation 0% food, essential items |
| Russia | 20.0 |
10% food, items for children |
| Slovakia | 23.0 |
10% food, medicine |
| Spain | 16.0 |
7% food, dwellings 4% basic necessities 0% books, water supply, medicine, exports |
| Sweden | 25.0 |
12% food, tourism, hotels, passenger transport 6% culture, newspapers, magazines, cinemas, sports |
| Switzerland | 7.5 |
3.5% hotels and lodging services 2.3% food, medicine, newspapers, water supply |
| Turkey | 17.0 |
25% cars, restaurants, white ware 8% food, books, newspapers 1% agricultural products |
| Ukraine | 20.0 |
0% culture, newspapers, education, healthcare, bank services, insurance, rents |
| United Kingdom | 17.5 |
0% food, books, newspapers, fuel, power, energy |
| United States | -- |
No national sales tax. Average of state tax rates is approximately 5%. Bases and exemptions vary widely. |
Source: World Taxpayers Associations (2004)