The Financial Transactions Tax as Tax-based Own Resource for the EU Budget

Key Findings A broad-based financial transactions tax presents itself as a suitable instrument to simultaneously raise revenues and curb highly speculative and potentially destabilising short-term financial transactions. The introduction of an FTT within Enhanced Cooperation in the EU may serve as a pilot, representing the first step towards an EU-wide implementation. Under a Brexit scenario, an FTT introduced by a “Coalition of the Willing” including 10 EU Member States could yield € 4 to € 33 billion. The FTT is an interesting option for tax-based own resources partially substituting current own resources to finance the EU budget, allowing Member States to cut their national contributions to the EU budget and thus creating budgetary space to cut national taxes more harmful for growth and employment (in particular the high taxes on labour)