Hospitality VAT:
the UK against the EU
All 28markets — every EU member state plus the UK — with restaurant food and restaurant alcohol held separately, because a reduced food rate rarely extends to what's in the glass. Toggle the series and search any market. Figures are the latest available rates, sourced per country.
Restaurant Food VAT Rates (EU vs. UK)
VAT Percentage Rate- Denmark25.0%
- Estonia24.0%
- Latvia21.0%
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom20.0%
- Finland14.0%
- Greece13.0%
- Croatia13.0%
- Portugal13.0%
- Belgium12.0%
- Czechia12.0%
- Lithuania12.0%
- Sweden12.0%
- Austria10.0%
- Spain10.0%
- France10.0%
- Italy10.0%
- Slovenia9.5%
- Bulgaria9.0%
- Cyprus9.0%
- Ireland9.0%
- Netherlands9.0%
- Romania9.0%
- Poland8.0%
- Germany7.0%
- Malta7.0%
- Hungary5.0%
- Slovakia5.0%
- Luxembourg3.0%
Country Breakdown
Detailed VAT rates sorted lowest to highest
| Country | VAT Category | VAT Rate | Comparison to UK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🇪🇺Austria | Reduced Service Rate | 10.0% | -10.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Belgium | Reduced Service Rate | 12.0% | -8.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Bulgaria | Reduced Service Rate | 9.0% | -11.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Cyprus | Reduced Service Rate | 9.0% | -11.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Czechia | Reduced Service Rate | 12.0% | -8.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Germany | Reduced Service Rate | 7.0% | -13.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Denmark | Standard Rate | 25.0% | +5.0% higher than UK |
| 🇪🇺Estonia | Standard Rate | 24.0% | +4.0% higher than UK |
| 🇪🇺Spain | Reduced Service Rate | 10.0% | -10.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Finland | Reduced Service Rate | 14.0% | -6.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺France | Reduced Service Rate | 10.0% | -10.0% lower than UK |
| 🇬🇧United Kingdom | Standard (No reduction) | 20.0% | Reference |
| 🇪🇺Greece | Reduced Service Rate | 13.0% | -7.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Croatia | Reduced Service Rate | 13.0% | -7.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Hungary | Reduced Service Rate | 5.0% | -15.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Ireland | Reduced Service Rate | 9.0% | -11.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Italy | Reduced Service Rate | 10.0% | -10.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Lithuania | Reduced Service Rate | 12.0% | -8.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Luxembourg | Reduced Service Rate | 3.0% | -17.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Latvia | Standard Rate | 21.0% | +1.0% higher than UK |
| 🇪🇺Malta | Reduced Service Rate | 7.0% | -13.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Netherlands | Reduced Service Rate | 9.0% | -11.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Poland | Reduced Service Rate | 8.0% | -12.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Portugal | Reduced Service Rate | 13.0% | -7.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Romania | Reduced Service Rate | 9.0% | -11.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Sweden | Reduced Service Rate | 12.0% | -8.0% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Slovenia | Reduced Service Rate | 9.5% | -10.5% lower than UK |
| 🇪🇺Slovakia | Reduced Service Rate | 5.0% | -15.0% lower than UK |
Regional Anomalies & Regulatory Specifics
- 🛒 Retail vs. Hospitality DivergenceIn Spain and Italy, buying alcohol in retail stores/supermarkets incurs standard VAT (21% and 22%). However, ordering it in a restaurant or bar drops the rate to the reduced 10% hospitality service rate.
- 🍹 Bar vs. Restaurant EquivalenceFor on-premise consumption, bar sales and restaurant sales are treated identically under the same hospitality (HORECA) tax rules. A drink at a bar counter is taxed exactly the same as at a dining table.
- 🥡 The Takeaway ExceptionIf a bar/restaurant sells alcohol to-go (takeaway), it is reclassified as a retail sale of goods. In Spain and Italy, this immediately reverts the VAT from the 10% reduced rate back to 21% or 22% standard rates.
- 🇩🇪 Germany & Ireland UpdatesGermany reintroduces a permanent 7% reduced rate for food from 2026, but excludes all beverages (alcoholic or not), keeping drinks at 19%. Ireland's hospitality food rate drops back to 9% starting 1 July 2026.
The UK Food Penalty
24 of the 27other markets tax a restaurant meal below the UK's 20.0% standard rate, averaging 11.1%. The UK is not the worst of them: Denmark (25.0%), Estonia (24.0%), Latvia (21.0%) charge more, and two of those apply their standard rate to hospitality exactly as the UK does.
Drinks Are a Different Story
Alcohol mostly takes the standard rate, averaging 21.0% across the 27 comparators, so the UK is not an outlier here. Spain and Italy are the exception, extending a reduced rate to restaurant and bar supply. This compares VAT only — excise duty, where the UK sits high, is not in this data.
Where the Gap Bites
The UK applies one rate to food and drink alike, so a food-led venue cannot lean on a reduced food rate to absorb rising wage, ingredient and energy costs the way an operator in Germany (7.0%) or Ireland (9.0%) can.