Iceland: Taxes on goods and services (current LCU)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, Iceland's taxes on goods and services (current LCU) rose 13.1% on 2022 (from 430.15 billion to 486.56 billion).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1993 to 2022), the average change was +7.3% and a typical year strayed about 7% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.8 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 82.2% in 1974 and the biggest yearly fall was 9% in 2009. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2014 to 2023 the straight-line trend is upward, about 23.49 billion a year. A straight line explains 89% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 506.68 billion for 2026. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2021 to 2023 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 42.12 billion, against 101.55 billion for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

In 2023, Iceland had the 7th highest value of the 16 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Iceland in the 2023 ranking

• Kazakhstan — 3rd of 16: 6.05 trillion
• Côte d'Ivoire — 4th of 16: 2.44 trillion
• Sri Lanka — 5th of 16: 1.42 trillion
• Togo — 7th of 16: 452.67 billion
• Nepal — 8th of 16: 345.78 billion
• Ghana — 9th of 16: 44.28 billion

What this measures

General taxes on goods and services are taxes levied on the production, leasing, delivery, sale, purchase or other change of ownership of a wide range of goods and the provision of a wide range of services. This indicator is expressed in current prices, meaning no adjustment has been made to account for price changes over time. This series is expressed in local currency units.

Limitations: For most countries central government finance data have been consolidated into one account, but for others only budgetary central government accounts are available. Countries reporting budgetary data are noted in the country metadata. Because budgetary accounts may not include all central government units (such as social security funds), they usually provide an incomplete picture. In federal states the central government accounts provide an incomplete view of total public finance. Data on government revenue and expense are collected by the IMF through questionnaires to member countries and by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

All 52 values

Taxes on goods and services (current LCU) in nearby economies

• Albania — 326.9 billion (2024)
• Armenia — 1.2 trillion (2024)
• Austria — 56.3 billion (2024)
• Azerbaijan — 10.97 billion (2024)
• Belarus — 22.33 billion (2024)
• Belgium — 56.36 billion (2024)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 8.76 billion (2024)
• Bulgaria — 14.98 billion (2024)
• Croatia — 14.17 billion (2023)
• Cyprus — 4.14 billion (2024)

More public sector data for Iceland

• Military expenditure (current USD) — 0 (2025)
• Military expenditure (current LCU) — 0 (2025)
• Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 0% (2025)
• Net incurrence of liabilities, total (current LCU) — 113.95 billion (2023)
• Net incurrence of liabilities, total (% of GDP) — 2.61% (2023)
• Net investment in nonfinancial assets (current LCU) — 100.01 billion (2023)
• Net investment in nonfinancial assets (% of GDP) — 2.29% (2023)
• Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) (current LCU) — -47.09 billion (2023)
• Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) (% of GDP) — -1.08% (2023)
• Grants and other revenue (current LCU)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Iceland's taxes on goods and services (current LCU)?

486.56 billion in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1972?

It is up 703,023% from 69.2 million in 1972 (18.97% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 486.56 billion in 2023 and the lowest 69.2 million in 1972.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator GC.TAX.GSRV.CN, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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