- The EU budget for 2028-2034 is proposed to increase to nearly €2 trillion to fund climate, digitalization, security, and COVID-19 recovery costs.
- Current EU funding relies heavily on national contributions based on gross national income, primarily from taxes on labour and consumption, leading to a narrow focus on net positions rather than common goals.
- Expanding genuine EU own resources, such as new taxes on ultra-wealthy individuals and crypto transactions, could shift the debate toward funding European public goods.
- Proposed alternative revenue sources include taxes on financial transactions, aviation, crypto-assets, and ultra-high wealth, with the latter potentially raising up to €41 billion annually.
- Taxes on mobile bases like financial trades and crypto are best implemented at EU level to avoid cross-border avoidance and tax competition.
- A minimum tax on net wealth over €100 million targets wealthy individuals with low effective tax rates and could reduce tax competition among member states.
- New EU-level taxes that don't exist nationally, such as on ultra-high wealth or crypto, would add new revenue without reducing national tax income.