Pierre Gramegna, Minister of Finance; Credit: Chronicle.lu

On Friday 21 September 2018, the European Commission published a study concerning the "VAT Gap" for the year 2016 across the European Union; the European Commission defines the VAT gap as the overall difference between the expected VAT receipts and the actual amount collected.

In this study, Luxembourg ranked first at the European level with a gap rate of 0.85% compared to the EU average of 12.3%.

For 2016, the European Commission notes an improvement in the collection of VAT revenues: however, it also raises a loss of €150 billion per year for national budgets. According to the Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Taxation and Customs, Pierre Moscovici, €50 billion would end up in the pockets of fraudsters, criminals and even terrorists.

Pierre Gramegna, Luxembourg's Minister of Finance, commented: "I am delighted with this good result and congratulate the Registration, Domains and VAT Administration for its excellent work. I can only express the wish that the collaboration at European level be deepened in this area."