Recent data from the Tax Foundation reveal a widening gap in Europe between East and West when it comes to tax rates for top earners in 2026. While progressive taxation is widely used across the continent to promote social equity, the highest marginal rates differ sharply. Bulgaria and Romania stand out with a maximum rate of just 10 percent, while Denmark imposes the steepest rate at 60.5 percent. Across 35 European countries analyzed, the average top rate reaches 38.5 percent, rising to 43.4 percent among OECD members.

The data highlight a cluster of seven countries where the richest face rates above 50 percent. Alongside Denmark, France, Austria, Spain, Belgium, Portugal, and Sweden are in this category, with Slovenia and the Netherlands close behind. In the continent’s largest economies, disparities remain notable: the United Kingdom’s top rate is 45 percent, while France reaches 55.4 percent. Other major states, including Germany, Italy, and Ireland, maintain more moderate levels between 40 and 48 percent.

Central and Eastern Europe, by contrast, largely keeps maximum rates below 25 percent. Beyond Bulgaria and Romania, Hungary, Estonia, and the Czech Republic feature among these low-tax countries, along with non-EU states such as Moldova, Ukraine, and Georgia. Yet, even in this region, change is underway: Estonia recently raised its flat rate to 24 percent, while Slovakia introduced additional tax brackets, pushing its top rate from 25 to 35 percent. These adjustments reflect government efforts to improve revenue collection in a shifting economic landscape.

Experts caution, however, that excessively high marginal rates can backfire by discouraging high earners. Fiscal studies suggest that expanding the tax base among lower-income groups often yields stronger results than sharply increasing top rates. The debate unfolds amid public skepticism: only one in five Europeans in 2025 believe that taxes are fully proportional to accumulated wealth, underlining ongoing tensions between tax policy and public trust.