Summary

(Note: The report can be downloaded free of charge by WAN-IFRA members and non-members alike.)

A lowered value-added tax (VAT) rate is the most common form of indirect state subsidy available to the newspaper industry in the EU, with the great majority of Member States applying a reduced rate to print newspapers. These range from 2.1% (France) to 13% (Croatia), but in some countries newspapers are exempted from paying VAT entirely, while in others newspapers do not benefit from any reduction.

Our new report provides a general overview of the landscape in the EU. We hope that it will contribute to the ongoing global discussions concerning indirect press subsidies.

While the EU rules have allowed printed newspapers to benefit from reduced VAT rates, this regime does not cover digital publications, to which the standard rate applies. Yet in 2015, some Member States extended the reduced VAT rate to digital publications, resulting in the European Commission opening a procedure of infringement against them.

Late last year, the European Commission released a proposal that, if approved, would allow Member States to align VAT rates between print and digital publications.

> Download the report free of charge <