A staggeringly high VAT on books could be contributing to a “reading crisis” among Danes.
At least that’s what Danish lawmakers seem to think, in an announcement made by the government on Wednesday, August 20th, 2025.
Currently, Denmark boasts a 25% VAT (value-added tax) on the sale of books. It’s also currently the highest in the world.
In a statement to the Ritzau news agency, Danish cultural minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt said: “This is something that I, as minister of culture, have worked for, because I believe that we must put everything at stake if we are to end the reading crisis that has unfortunately been spreading in recent years.”
The move to remove the VAT would put Denmark on par with other Nordic countries. While Sweden, Finland and Norway also have a standard 25% VAT, this doesn’t apply to books. Their numbers pale in comparison to that of Denmark; Sweden applies 6%, Finland 14% and Norway has removed VAT from books entirely.
The changes are estimated to reflect a cost of 330 million kroner ($32 mil USD) per year.
Engle-Schmidt went on to further add: “I am incredibly proud. It is not every day that one succeeds in convincing colleagues that such massive money should be spent on investing in the consumption and culture of the Danes.”
Although optimistic, he says the government will monitor the move: “I will, of course, monitor how prices develop. If it turns out that abolishing VAT only means that publishers’ profits grow and prices do not fall, then we must consider whether it was the right thing to do.”
Engle-Schmidt also noted that the government is working in cooperation with the country’s public schools and libraries to ensure more children are introduced to “good literature.”
Denmark comprises just over 6 million Danes. According to National Statistics, more than 8 million books were purchased in 2023.
As first reported by The Guardian.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Care is the Social Media Manager at Book Notification. She is an avid reader/writer, Mama to 3 adult kids, a wedding DJ, and a snob for coffee and pop culture. Her favourite book is Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli. She lives in Canada with her husband and record collection.