Latvian tax system most attractive in Baltics

RIGA - The Latvian tax system is the most attractive among the three Baltic states and ranks 13th by the Total Tax and Contribution Rate (TTCR) among 190 world countries covered by the latest Paying Taxes report produced by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) auditors and the World Bank Group.

The Paying Taxes 2018 report ranks Estonia 14th and Lithuania 18th.

In Latvia, the TTCR is 35.9 percent, the time spent on tax compliance is 169 hours and the number of the required payments is seven. In Estonia, it is 48.7 percent, 50 hours and eight payments. In Lithuania, it is 42.7 percent, 109 hours and 11 payments.

The average TTCR in the EU and EFTA countries is 39.6 percent, time to comply is 161 hours and the number of payments is 12. The global TTCR is 40.5 percent, time to comply is 240 hours and 24 payments are required.

Based on Paying Taxes 2018, Qatar has the most attractive tax system in the world, followed by the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Iceland, Bahrain, Kuwait, Singapore, Denmark, New Zealand and Mauritius.

Venezuela is at the very bottom of the list, and the situation with taxes is only slightly better in Chad, the Central African Republic and Bolivia.