Excise tax added to beer in selected European countries January 2019

At the beginning of 2019, Finland had the highest excise tax on beer at 175.2 euros per hectoliter, followed by Ireland which had an excise tax valued at 108.24 euros.

Excise duty

Excise taxes are levied against goods at the point in time when they are produced or against services when they are rendered. Companies usually pass the costs on to the consumer. It is typically a per unit tax and not a share of the price of a product and targets specific products; in this case beer or alcohol. Excise taxes vary across Europe due to different political aims of the governments levying this duty.
Value-added taxes (VAT) are levied separately. These taxes and other factors heavily influence the final price of alcoholic beverages. Of the countries covered in the presented statistic, Finland had not only the highest excise duties but also the highest overall price for alcoholic beverages. Only Iceland and Norway exceeded Finland’s alcohol prices.

European beer market

The per capita consumption of beer was highest in Czechia. The country, which levied an excise duty of only 14.91 euros per hectoliter of beer, had a per capita consumption of 141 liters in 2018. The United Kingdom was the leading beer importer, followed by Germany.