Deposit Interest Tax in Every EU Country (2026 Table)

Disclaimer: This article is general information, not tax advice. Tax rates and rules change frequently, depend on your personal circumstances, and may differ from the general treatment described here. Always confirm the current rules with your national tax authority or a qualified tax professional before acting.

With the ECB's deposit facility rate back up to 2.25% since June 2026 and the best fixed-term deposits in Spain and Germany paying up to 2.33%, interest income is once again worth real money — and so is the tax on it. The difference between earning interest in Romania (10% tax) and Denmark (up to 42%) can matter more than the difference between two banks' headline rates.

This is our reference table of how deposit interest is taxed across the EU in 2026, verified country by country against PwC's Worldwide Tax Summaries and national sources.

Key facts

• Interest is generally taxed where you live, not where the bank is. An Estonian saver with a French deposit owes Estonian tax on that interest.
• Most EU countries apply a flat tax of 10–33% on deposit interest; Denmark (progressive, up to 42%) and the Netherlands (tax on a deemed return, not actual interest) are the main outliers.
• Many countries withhold at source: the bank deducts the tax before crediting interest, and in most of them that settles the liability in full.
• There is no EU-wide withholding tax. The EU Savings Directive was repealed in 2015; instead, banks automatically report your accounts to your home tax authority under DAC2/CRS.
• Bulgaria currently exempts interest from EU/EEA bank accounts entirely, while Belgium, Slovenia, Lithuania, Germany and Luxembourg offer allowances or exemptions for smaller savers.
• Double-taxation treaties usually let you credit foreign withholding tax against your home tax bill — but you often have to claim it yourself.

The two rules every cross-border saver should know

Rule 1: Residence decides where you owe tax. Almost every EU country taxes its residents on worldwide income, including interest earned abroad. Opening a deposit in another EU country does not move the tax liability; you normally declare that interest at home, at your home country's rates in the table below.

Rule 2: Some countries also withhold at source. Where you see "Yes" in the withholding column, the local bank deducts tax before paying interest — usually as a final tax for residents. Many countries do not withhold on deposit interest paid to non-residents; where they do, a double-taxation treaty typically caps it and lets you credit it against your home liability.

Since the repeal of the EU Savings Directive in 2015 (Council Directive (EU) 2015/2060), there is no EU-level withholding on cross-border savings. Transparency replaced withholding: under DAC2, which implements the OECD Common Reporting Standard (CRS) in the EU, banks automatically report account balances and interest paid to the tax authority of the account holder's residence country. Assume your home tax office already knows about your foreign deposit.

Deposit interest tax by EU country (2026)

Rates below describe the general treatment of bank deposit interest for resident individuals, based on sources reviewed between December 2025 and June 2026. Special regimes, allowances and local surcharges may change the picture for you.

Country	Tax rate on interest	Withheld at source?	Notes
Austria	25%	Yes — final (KESt)	Bank deposit interest at 25%; most other capital income at 27.5%
Belgium	30%	Yes	First EUR 1,050 (2025) of regulated savings-account interest exempt; 15% above that threshold
Bulgaria	0% on EU/EEA bank interest	No	Interest from EU/EEA bank accounts exempt since April 2022; 10% on accounts outside the EU/EEA
Croatia	12%	Yes, via Croatian banks	Sight (a-vista) interest on current accounts exempt; foreign interest self-declared
Cyprus	17% SDC (domiciled residents)	Yes	Interest exempt from income tax but subject to Special Defence Contribution; non-domiciled residents pay no SDC; partial refund if total income ≤ EUR 12,000
Czechia	15%	Yes — final	Withheld by the bank on deposit-account interest
Denmark	Up to 42% (capital income)	No	Taxed progressively via the annual assessment; banks report interest to the tax agency
Estonia	22% flat	Generally at source	Flat income tax applies to interest as ordinary income
Finland	30%	Yes — final on Finnish bank deposits	Capital income above EUR 30,000/year taxed at 34%
France	31.4% PFU (2026)	Yes	Flat tax raised from 30%: 12.8% income tax + 18.6% social levies; progressive scale on option
Germany	26.375%	Yes	25% Abgeltungsteuer + 5.5% solidarity surcharge (church tax extra); EUR 1,000 saver's allowance per person
Greece	15%	Yes — final	Withholding exhausts the liability for individuals
Hungary	15% + 13% social tax	Declared/paid with annual return (per PwC)	13% social tax applies to interest on instruments acquired after 1 July 2023; long-term investment accounts can cut the rate to 10% or 0%
Ireland	33% (DIRT)	Yes — final	DIRT satisfies the full liability; over-65s and incapacitated persons may be exempt or reclaim
Italy	26%	Yes — final	Flat substitute tax applied at source
Latvia	25.5%	Yes, when paid by a Latvian payer	Otherwise declared via the annual return
Lithuania	15%	Check with bank/authority	EUR 500/year of deposit interest tax-exempt (post-2014 deposits); 20% on income above ~EUR 253,000 (2025)
Luxembourg	20%	Yes — final ("relibi")	Final 20% withholding on qualifying resident bank interest
Malta	15% (investment-income WHT)	Yes, where the regime applies	Final 15% withholding under investment income provisions; otherwise declared at marginal rates
Netherlands	36% on a deemed return (Box 3)	No	Actual interest not taxed; 2026: deemed return on savings 1.28%, taxed at 36%, EUR 59,357 tax-free per person
Poland	19%	Yes	Flat "Belka tax" on revenue; no deductions
Portugal	28%	Yes — final	Option to aggregate at marginal rates instead
Romania	10%	Yes — final	Withheld by the payer
Slovakia	19%	Yes — final	Final withholding on bank deposit and current-account interest
Slovenia	25%	Final tax	First EUR 1,000/year of interest from EU bank deposits exempt
Spain	19–30% (savings scale)	Yes — on account	Brackets: 19% / 21% / 23% / 27% / 30% (over EUR 300,000); bank withholding credited in the annual return
Sweden	30%	Preliminary tax generally deducted	Flat tax on capital income, settled via annual assessment

All 27 EU member states are covered above; every rate was checked against the sources listed at the end of this article. Where our sources were not explicit about the withholding mechanics (e.g. Lithuania), we say so rather than guess.

What stands out in 2026

The spread is enormous. A saver earning EUR 1,000 of interest keeps the full amount in Bulgaria (EU/EEA accounts), around EUR 900 in Romania, about EUR 736 in Germany — and as little as EUR 580–670 in Ireland or Denmark. Since maximum deposit rates across the EU currently sit in a narrow 1.48%–2.33% band, after-tax returns often differ more because of tax than because of the deposit rate itself.

France got more expensive. The 2026 finance legislation lifted the flat tax (PFU) on investment income from 30% to 31.4% via higher social contributions, per PwC — the most notable rate move in this year's table.

Small-saver exemptions matter at today's rates. Germany's EUR 1,000 allowance shelters roughly EUR 43,000 of deposits at a 2.33% rate; Belgium's regulated-savings exemption and Slovenia's EUR 1,000 EU-deposit exemption work similarly. For modest balances, several "high-tax" countries are effectively tax-free.

The Netherlands taxes wealth, not interest. Box 3 ignores what your deposit actually pays and taxes a deemed 1.28% return (2026) at 36% above the allowance — which can mean a higher or lower effective burden than a classic withholding tax, depending on your actual rate.

Remember that tax is only one side of the safety-and-return equation: deposits across the EU are protected up to EUR 100,000 per depositor per bank by national deposit guarantee schemes.

What cross-border savers should do in practice

1. Declare foreign interest at home. Your residence country's rate from the table is what ultimately applies. CRS/DAC2 reporting means non-declaration is likely to be detected.
2. Check the source country's treatment of non-residents. Many EU countries do not withhold on bank interest paid to non-resident individuals; where they do, the applicable double-taxation treaty usually caps the rate and your home country credits it.
3. Keep the paperwork. Interest statements and any foreign tax certificates are needed to claim treaty credits or refunds.
4. Compare after-tax, not headline, rates. When you compare fixed-term deposits across the EU, apply your home tax rate to every offer — as a resident, the same rate hits a foreign deposit and a domestic one, but domestic withholding may also apply on top and need reconciling.

FAQ

I live in one EU country and hold a deposit in another. Where do I pay tax?

In your country of residence, at the rate shown for it in the table. If the source country also withholds tax on non-residents, a double-taxation treaty normally limits that withholding and lets you credit it against your home tax bill, so the same interest is not taxed twice in full.

Will my home tax authority find out about my foreign deposit?

Almost certainly yes. Under DAC2, the EU implementation of the OECD Common Reporting Standard, banks report account balances and interest annually to the tax authority of your country of residence. This automatic exchange replaced the old EU Savings Directive, which was repealed in 2015.

Is there a single EU withholding tax on savings interest?

No. Since the Savings Directive's repeal, there is no EU-level withholding. Each member state sets its own rules — which is why rates in the table range from 0% (Bulgaria, for EU/EEA accounts) to over 40% (Denmark).

Do deposit platforms deduct my tax for me?

Usually not for your residence country. A platform or foreign bank may (or may not) apply the source country's withholding, but your home tax is normally yours to declare and pay through your annual return. Check each offer's tax documentation before you commit.

Which EU country taxes deposit interest the least?

Bulgaria currently exempts interest on EU/EEA bank accounts, Cyprus non-domiciled residents pay no SDC on interest, and Romania's 10% flat rate is the lowest standard rate. Several countries exempt small amounts (Belgium, Slovenia, Lithuania, Germany via its allowance).

Sources

Country data was verified against PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries (pages last reviewed December 2025 – June 2026) and the additional sources below:

• PwC Tax Summaries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden
• Accace – 2025 Tax Guideline for Slovakia (Slovak 19% final withholding on deposit interest)
• EasyCorporate – Special Defence Contribution guide, updated for the 2026 Cyprus reform
• Moore Global – Malta Tax Guide (15% investment-income withholding)
• TaxRavens – Capital income taxation in Croatia (12% on deposit interest)
• Kelisto – IRPF withholding on Spanish bank interest
• Aangifte24 – Box 3 in 2026 (Netherlands)
• Council Directive (EU) 2015/2060 repealing the Savings Directive – EUR-Lex
• European Commission – DAC2 automatic exchange of financial account information
• ECB monetary policy decisions, 11 June 2026 (deposit facility 2.25% from 17 June 2026)
• PickTheBank – Maximum deposit interest rates by country

Reminder: Tax rules summarised here are general, simplified and subject to change. This article is not tax, legal or investment advice. Confirm the current rates and your personal treatment with the relevant national tax authority or a qualified tax adviser.