Saving your money in a foreign country might be good for your wallet and safe, but there is an issue you should not forget should you decide to house your assets abroad: taxation. Indeed, even though the EU is a free market, you cannot move funds without taking some precautions:
When opening an account in a foreign country in Europe, you must declare the income from the account in both your country of residence and the country in which the account is domiciled.
The Council Directive 2003/48/EC of 3 June 2003 on taxation of savings income in the form of interest payments aims to ensure that the owner of an account in a foreign country declares the income of the account in his country of residence. The goal of this Directive was to reduce existing distortions in the effective taxation of savings income in the form of interest payments and to combat harmful tax competition.
Cross-border double taxation occurs when two different countries subject the same item of income or property to tax for the same period and in the hands of the same taxpayer. It is typically what happens for the taxation of savings income in the form of interest payments.
There is no general EU measure to eliminate double taxation. Yet, most EU countries have bilateral tax treaties in place with each other to relieve double taxation when it occurs.
The Court of Justice of the EU has ruled that, in the absence of an EU-wide measure to eliminate double taxation, EU countries retain the power to define their own double taxation policies Multiple EU member countries can also coordinate their criteria for allocating powers of taxation unilaterally to eliminate double taxation. However, EU countries are not obliged under EU law or international law to conduct tax treaties with each other.
| Country where you hold your money | Rule | EU Countries with which DTAs/DTTs have been made | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Austria | Non-residents are subject to tax on income derived from Austrian sources. Dividends and interest are generally subject to a withholding tax at a special rate of 27.5%. However, in case of interest derived from bank deposits and non-bonded receivables at a financial institution are subject to a withholding tax at a special rate of 25%. | Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Bulgaria |
Non-residents are taxed in Bulgaria only on their Bulgarian-source income, which has a very broad legal definition. Generally, this is all income derived as a result of economic activities performed in the territory of Bulgaria or as a result of disposal of property in Bulgaria (e.g. income from savings). A flat tax rate of 10% applies to all personal income, with the exception of interest income generated from bank deposits, which is subject to a rate of 8 percent. |
Austria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Croatia |
Non-resident taxpayers are liable to pay tax in Croatia on Croatian-source income. Interest on savings accounts are taxed at the rate of 12%, plus city surtax if applicable. |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Cyprus |
Dividend and interest incomes received by individuals are generally exempt from income tax but are subject to the Special Defense Contribution (SDC), which is imposed at flat rates of 17% on dividend income and 30% on interest income. As from 16 July 2015, individuals who are not domiciled in Cyprus for tax purposes are not subject to SDC on dividend income, passive interest income, and rental income. Thus, dividend and interest incomes are exempt from all taxes in Cyprus for such individuals |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Czech Republic |
Tax non-residents are generally taxed only on income considered Czech-source income. Basically, income in the form of interest, dividends, settlement shares, and silent partners’ shares has tax withheld at the source, if from Czech sources. Interest and dividends from Czech sources are subject to 15% flat tax rate, which is withheld at the source by the payer of the income |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Denmark | If you have income from Denmark, but you are not a resident here, you may be subject to limited tax liability. This implies that you are taxable on your Danish source income but that you remain fully tax-liable in your home country. | Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Estonia |
Non-residents are taxed on their Estonian-source income. Most items of personal income are taxed on a gross basis, mainly through withholding at source. Income tax is not charged for non-residents for interest paid to a natural person by a credit institution resident in a contracting state of the European Economic Area or a branch of a non-resident credit institution situated in a contracting state of the European Economic Area. |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Finland | A progressive tax schedule for investment income is in effect. Investment income up to EUR 30,000 is taxed at 30%, and investment income exceeding EUR 30000 is taxed at 34%. These percentages apply unless otherwise stated in an applicable tax treaty. Taxable investment income includes the interest income on bank deposits and bonds and dividends paid to residents | Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| France |
Individuals who are not domiciled in France (non-residents) are subject to tax only on their income arising in France or, in certain cases, on imputed income (i.e. the money that can be attributed to a person when they avoid paying for services by providing the services to themselves). Most local savings products are tax free (such as the Livret A). |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Germany | Non-residents are subject to tax on certain categories of income from German sources under the concept of limited tax liability. Interest income is subject to a flat tax rate of 25% plus solidarity surcharge which is withheld at source. Interest income qualifies for an investor's allowance of EUR 801 per taxpayer, and related expenses cannot be deducted. This amount is doubled in the case of married taxpayers filing jointly. | Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Greece | Income tax is payable by all individuals earning income in Greece, regardless of citizenship or place of permanent residence, subject to relevant tax treaty provisions. Income from interest is subject to tax at the rate of 15% that exhausts the tax liability in case the beneficiary is an individual. |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Hungary |
Income derived from any activity performed in Hungary qualifies as domestic-source income. Dividends and interests are taxed at 15%. |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Ireland | Interest on most Irish deposit accounts is paid after a deduction of DIRT by the financial institution at the rate of 41%. Where interest is paid or credited on other deposit accounts (e.g. where interest is credited at maturity), income tax at the rate of 41% is deducted at source. DIRT effectively satisfies the full liability to tax. | Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Italy | Generally, interest income is taxable. There are, however, very different taxation rules for different financial instruments, according to the source of the interest. Interest on bank and postal current accounts and interest on bank and postal deposits are subject to a final withholding tax of 26%. Interest on foreign bank accounts can be subject to a 26% substitute tax via the income tax return. | Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Latvia | Non-residents are liable for income tax on their Latvian-source income. Dividend income, interest income, and income from life insurance contracts and private pension funds is taxed at 10%. Capital gains on disposal of capital assets (e.g. real estate, shares, bonds) are taxed at 15%. |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Lithuania | Income from distributed profits Interest and capital gains is subject to a 15% income tax rate. However, certain interest not exceeding EUR 500 per year and certain capital gains from securities not exceeding EUR 500 is non-taxable. | Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Luxembourg | Individual income tax is levied on Luxembourg-source income of non-residents. A 10% final withholding tax is levied on interest paid by resident paying agents to resident individuals in Luxembourg, including interest on bank deposits. |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Malta |
Any person who is not ordinarily resident or domiciled in Malta is taxable only on income arising in Malta and on any foreign income remitted to Malta at the rates enumerated below:
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Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Netherlands | In the Netherlands, personal income is divided into three types of taxable income, which are taxed separately under their own schedules (referred to as ‘box 1’, ‘box 2’ and ‘box 3’). Non-residents are subject to taxation only on the net value of a limited number of Dutch assets, including Dutch real estate not used as the primary residence and profits rights unrelated to shares or an employment. Income from savings and investments (e.g. dividends) is, as such, not taxable. | Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Poland |
Non-residents are subject to Polish PIT on their Polish-sourced income only. |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK |
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| Portugal | Dividends and investments paid by foreign entities are taxed at a special rate of 28%. | Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Romania |
Foreign individuals, regardless of their domicile, are taxed in Romania during the first year of presence, only on income sourced in Romania, until the moment they become Romanian tax residents taxable on their worldwide income. Generally, interest and dividends are subject to a 16% tax rate. Romanian residents paying interest or dividends to individuals (residents or non-residents) have an obligation to withhold tax. |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Slovakia |
A Slovak tax non-resident is liable to tax on Slovak-source income only. Interest income from Slovak bank deposits is taxed by the banks at 19%, representing final tax. |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Slovenia | A non-resident is obligated to pay PIT from all income sourced in Slovenia. Interest is taxed at a 25% rate withholding tax or by tax assessment. However, interest on bank deposits paid by a bank situated in Slovenia or another EU Member State is taxable only for the part that exceeds EUR 1,000. |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Spain | Non-residents are subject to NRIT only on their Spanish-source income. As a general rule, investment income, such as dividends and interest arising from bank deposits, any gains on sales of shares, and so on, obtained by a Spanish tax resident will be taxed at a rate of 19% for 2016 for amounts up to EUR 6,000, 21% for income in an amount between EUR 6,000 and 50,000 and 23% for amounts exceeding EUR 50,000. |
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, UK | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sweden | An individual is either considered as an unlimited tax resident or a limited tax resident for Swedish income tax purposes. An individual who is considered as an unlimited tax resident is taxed on worldwide income, while a limited tax resident is taxed on Swedish-source income only. Interest is taxed as investment income at a flat rate of 30%. | Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, UK |
This table was build in August 2016 for informational purposes only. Tax laws and treaties may change. We recommend that you contact a local tax advisor to analyze your situation or refer to the website of your domestic tax authority.