Withholding tax on EU gigs: what gets deducted from a band's fee abroad

When a band performs abroad, the host country may withhold tax from the fee before you get the money. This is called withholding tax (in Germany Ausländersteuer). You receive less than the contract said – the difference has gone to the host country's treasury.

There is no single EU rule for withholding tax: each country sets its own rate, and they range from zero to about 30 percent. The good news is that the tax is usually creditable against your tax at home, so it isn't always a final cost – but it affects cash flow and takes paperwork. This guide is orienting: the exact situation depends on the country and the tax treaty, and when in doubt, consult the tax authority or an adviser.

Withholding tax is one of the four groups of touring paperwork – see the overview: touring paperwork in one place.

It's an internationally established principle that the host country may tax performance income earned there, even if the performer lives elsewhere. In practice, the organiser or local payer deducts the tax straight from the fee and remits it to the host country's tax office. You're left with the fee minus the withholding tax.

This often comes as a surprise, because the amount differs from the contract figure. So it pays to agree in advance whether the fee is gross or net – that is, whether the withholding tax comes out of the agreed sum or on top of it. Ask the local promoter how withholding is handled and who deducts it.

Because the EU hasn't harmonised withholding tax, rates and procedures vary by country. Below are touring countries in three groups (situation in 2026). The figures are indicative and change, and the final tax always depends on the tax treaty between your home country and the host country.

Country	Withholding	Note
Netherlands	0%	Only for a treaty-country artist with a residence certificate; otherwise about 20%.
Denmark	0%	No separate artist withholding tax.
Ireland	0%	No separate artist withholding tax.
Hungary	0%	No separate artist withholding tax on short gigs.
Luxembourg	~10%	On the gross fee.
Germany	15.825%	€250/show/person exempt; an EU resident can deduct expenses (net option).
France	15%	A 10% professional-expense deduction before tax; a treaty may lower it.
Sweden	15%	A-SINK artist tax; travel and accommodation allowances are tax-free.
Norway	15%	On gross income, regardless of the size of the fee.
Belgium	~18%	A fixed expense deduction before tax.
Austria	20%	On gross (net option 25%); exempt if the fee is under €1,000 and total Austrian income under ~€2,420.
Spain	19/24%	19% for an EU resident (expenses deductible), 24% for others.
Portugal	~25%	On gross income (approximate; check the treaty).
Italy	30%	A final tax, no deductions and in practice no refund – the harshest in the EU.

Italy and Spain differ crucially. Italy's 30% is a final tax you can't reclaim without a permanent establishment in the country. Spain's 19%, by contrast, can partly come back to an EU resident when you file a return and deduct your real expenses. The same percentage can mean a very different final burden.

The default is that withholding tax is taken from the gross fee – travel, gear, accommodation and production aren't taken into account. If a gig's margin is thin, tax on the gross can eat the whole profit.

An important exception applies to any EU/EEA band: as an EU/EEA resident you can, in many countries, apply for net taxation and deduct the expenses directly tied to the gig before tax. This right is based on EU Court rulings (Gerritse, Scorpio): a foreign performer can't be taxed on the gross alone if the country's own residents may deduct their costs. The deduction requires receipts and often a separate application, so keep your receipts.

Even though the host country taxes you, the same income mustn't be taxed twice. Most EU countries have tax treaties with dozens of other countries, and the treaty gives the host country the right to tax performance income, while your country of residence removes the double taxation – typically by the credit method.

In practice: you report the foreign income in your home tax return, and the withholding tax paid abroad is credited against the tax due at home on the same income. Two important limits:

• The credit can't exceed your home tax on the same income. If the foreign tax was higher, you may not get the excess back in full. Many countries let an unused credit be carried forward to later years (in Finland, the next five).
• The credit goes to whoever is taxed on the fee. If the fee is paid through an agency or a company, the credit goes there – an individual musician then can't credit the tax against their own pay. This is a common pitfall.

Always keep the certificate of tax withheld – without it there's no credit.

A common mix-up: most countries have a withholding tax on foreign performers coming in, but that rate doesn't follow you when you tour abroad. Finland, for example, withholds 15% from a foreign artist performing there; Germany's Ausländersteuer and the rates in the table below work the same way – each is the host country's tax on incoming performers.

Direction matters. Touring abroad you face the host country's withholding tax (Italy 30%, Germany 15.8%, and so on) – not your own country's inbound rate. Your home country only enters the picture afterwards, removing the double taxation. So don't assume a foreign gig deducts the rate you know from home.

Withholding tax and the A1 certificate are often confused, but they're different things:

• Withholding tax = income tax. The host country taxes your fee.
• A1 = social security. It proves you stay in your home country's social security and don't pay social-security contributions to the host country.

An A1 protects you only from social-security contributions – not from income tax. Even with an A1 in your pocket, the host country can still withhold tax. Handle both separately.

• Ask the promoter in advance whether withholding tax applies, how much, and who handles it – and whether the fee is gross or net.
• Get a certificate of tax residence from your home tax authority. You need it for exemption and refund applications and for applying for net taxation.
• Keep receipts for travel, accommodation, freight and production – they reduce the tax in countries where a deduction is possible.
• Ask for the certificate of tax withheld from the payer. Without it you won't get the credit at home.
• Apply for an exemption or refund in good time. Processing can take months (in Germany, for example, an advance exemption takes about 3 months, longer when busy), and a refund is claimed separately afterwards.

Withholding tax is the host country's income tax, deducted from your fee by the organiser. The rate isn't harmonised across the EU: it ranges from zero (e.g. the Netherlands, Denmark) to about 30 percent (Italy). The tax is usually taken from the gross, but as an EU resident you can often deduct expenses. Your home country removes the double taxation by crediting the foreign tax when you report the income and present a certificate of the deduction. Remember that the inbound artist tax you know from home (in Finland, 15% on performers coming in) doesn't follow you abroad, and that withholding tax is a different matter from an A1. The figures change and depend on the tax treaty – confirm the current situation before the gig.