Business in the European Union

Currency: Euro (€)

On 1 January 1999, 11 members of the European Union adopted the Euro. They were later followed by Greece (2001) and Slovenia (2007).

Before the Euro, the European Currency Unit (ECU) was the official accounting unit of the European Union.

The thirteen countries who currently use the Euro are:

Austria	Italy
Belgium	Luxembourg
Finland	Netherlands
France	Portugal
Germany	Slovenia
Greece	Spain
Ireland

Industries:

The (most prosperous) industries present in Europe today include:

Metal production/processing	Aerospace
Metal products	Rail transportation equipment
Petroleum	Commercial vehicles
Coal	Passenger vehicles
Cement	Construction equipment
Chemicals	Industrial equipment
Pharmaceuticals	Electrical power equipment
Ship-building	Electronics
Machine tools	Fishing
Telecommunications	Furniture
Food/beverage processing	Textiles
Paper	Tourism

For more insights into the effects of the European Union on business in certain industries, please view our webinars.

Value Added Tax (VAT):

A Value Added Tax is an indirect tax applied to goods and services that are bought and sold for use or consumption in the European Community.

VAT is a general consumption tax assessed on the value added to goods and services and resembles United States' sales tax.

"It is a general tax that applies, in principle, to all commercial activities involving the production and distribution of goods and the provision of services. It is a consumption tax because it is borne ultimately by the final consumer. It is not a charge on companies. It is charged as a percentage of price, which means that the actual tax burden is visible at each stage in the production and distribution chain. It is collected fractionally, via a system of deductions whereby taxable persons (i.e., VAT-registered businesses) can deduct from their VAT liability the amount of tax they have paid to other taxable persons on purchases for their business activities. This mechanism ensures that the tax is neutral regardless of how many transactions are involved."
-from https://secure.reg.net/help/WhatIsVAT.asp

For a deeper explanation of Value Added Tax check www.direct.uk.gov.