Reference metadata describe statistical concepts and methodologies used for the collection and generation of data. They provide information on data quality and, since they are strongly content-oriented, assist users in interpreting the data. Reference metadata, unlike structural metadata, can be decoupled from the data.
Data presents environmental tax revenue (by tax category - energy, transport, pollution and resource taxes) broken down by economic activity (tax payer), using the NACE classification for production activities extended to cover taxes payable by households and non-residents.
Data presents also tables of ETS CO2 taxes and other CO2 taxes broken down by economic activity.
3.2. Classification system
Environmental tax revenue is broken down by: A. type of environmental tax, B. sector/industry of tax payer
A. Classification according to type of environmental tax
For analytical purposes, the environmental taxes are divided into four categories: 1. energy taxes (including CO2 taxes), 2. transport taxes, 3. pollution taxes, 4. resource taxes (excluding taxes on oil and gas extraction).
B. Environmental taxes by economic activity
Environmental tax revenues are allocated to the different tax payers: • by economic activity according to the statistical classification of economic activities in the European Community (NACE Rev.2) • households as consumers • non-residents • not allocated (impossible to be allocated to one of the categories mentioned above)
3.3. Coverage - sector
Environmental taxes by economic activity data cover taxes payable by all sectors of the economy: producers (economic activities by NACE), households as consumers as well as non-residents.
3.4. Statistical concepts and definitions
The environmental tax statistics are compiled based on Eurostat’s 2013 'Environmental taxes - a statistical guide'. Environmental tax is defined as "A tax whose tax base is a physical unit (or a proxy of a physical unit) of something that has a proven, specific negative impact on the environment, and which is identified in ESA2010 as a tax".
Environmental tax statistics are part of European environmental economic accounts, which constitute satellite accounts to national accounts. Thus, environmental tax statistics follows ESA2010 definition of ‘taxes’. Consequently, only payments that are identified as taxes in the national accounts can be reported as environmental taxes whereas other types of payments to government are not excluded from the scope of the data collection. Compliance with the tax definition of the national accounts improves international comparability of the statistics, and is in line with the guidance, concepts and definitions of the System of environmental and economic accounting (SEEA).
3.5. Statistical unit
Data refer to environmental taxes collected by the government and payable by the different economic agents.
3.6. Statistical population
The target population are all production sectors by NACE, households as consumers and non-residents.
3.7. Reference area
Estonia
3.8. Coverage - Time
Data from 2008 to 2023
Data for other years are not available.
3.9. Base period
Not applicable.
Million National Currency (MNAC)
The data refer to the calendar years.
6.1. Institutional Mandate - legal acts and other agreements
Statistics on environmental taxes are based on Regulation (EC) No. 691/2011 (Annex II) on European environmental economic accounts as amended by Regulation 538/2014, as well as legal acts in the area of national accounts. Data transmission became obligatory in September 2013. Before, Eurostat collected the data on a voluntary basis.
The basis for the national accounts tax aggregates is Table 9 "Detailed tax and social contribution receipts by type of tax or social contribution and receiving sub-sector including the list of taxes and social contributions according to national classification" of the ESA2010 transmission programme - Annex B of Regulation (EU) No. 549/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 May 2013 on the European system of national and regional accounts in the European Union. Moreover, Commission Regulation (EC) N° 995/2001 of 22 May 2001 implementing Council and European Parliament Regulation (EC) N° 2516/2000 of 10 July 2000 on the recording of taxes and social contributions sets the rules for the data sources, time of recording and comparable treatment of taxes and social contributions assessed but unlikely to be collected.
6.2. Institutional Mandate - data sharing
Not applicable.
7.1. Confidentiality - policy
The rules of confidentiality followed in Estonia are that a number is confidential if a) it makes up more than 90% of the total number, and b) if it comprises less than 3 units. Most cells that have been marked confidential are marked so because of these rules. After the primary confidentiality is assigned, it is necessary to find the secondary confidential cells. In Statistics Estonia in order to find secondary confidential cells the programme Tau-Argus is used.
7.2. Confidentiality - data treatment
ETEA data of Estonia are considered not confidential
8.1. Release calendar
Data on ETEA for 2008-2023 are published on Statistics Estonia website on 30th of June 2025.
The preannounced schedule of publication of data is announed at the beginning of year.
8.2. Release calendar access
Link to the release calendar on Statistics Estonia website is: Calendar.
8.3. Release policy - user access
The users are informed about the data will being released via release calendar published on Statistics Estonia website at the beginning of the year. The statistical data are disseminated to all users at the same time via Statistics Estonia website.
Data are published once a year.
10.1. Dissemination format - News release
Press releases are not made.
10.2. Dissemination format - Publications
Publications in which the data are made available to the public are not made so far.
No any other format was used for dissemination of data on env taxes in 2023
10.5.1. Metadata - consultations
Not applicable.
10.6. Documentation on methodology
Description of the methodology of environmental taxes account on the national level is given in the report “Air emissions and environmental taxes account” (Grant Agreement No 50904.2010.004-2010.590).
10.6.1. Metadata completeness - rate
Not applicable.
10.7. Quality management - documentation
No other quality documents besides Quality Reports submitted to Eurostat together with ETEA Questionnaire data have been compiled.
11.1. Quality assurance
The control checks implemented into ETEA Questionnaire 2024 were used for detecting potential errors or inconsistencies before the data were transmitted to Eurostat.
11.2. Quality management - assessment
To ensure that new environmental taxes are adequately captured in the national tax list and labelled correctly the specialist from government finance statistics will inform the specialist compiling environmental taxes account about new taxes in the national tax list that might be considered as environmental taxes. The specialist responsible for the compilation of environmental taxes has also access to tax data in the national tax list for possible feedback. An additional information source is Estonian Tax and Customs Board, which gives an overview on changes of fuel/electricity excise duty on its webpage. This information is taken into account while compiling the environmental taxes account.
12.1. Relevance - User Needs
Not applicable.
12.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction
Not applicable.
12.3. Completeness
All the cells in environmental taxes’ reporting table for the years 2008-2023 were filled in.
12.3.1. Data completeness - rate
Not applicable.
13.1. Accuracy - overall
There are no big deficiencies in our own opinion in the methodology for the compilation of environmental taxes account. However the estimation of fuel excise duty paid by non-residents has been difficult because of the lack of coherent basic data sources. Non-residents data from tourism satellite account were used for the calculation of fuel excise duty of non-residents. Tourism satellite account is based on the data of expenditures of non-residents in Estonia derived from Estonian Balance of Payments. Estonian Balance of Payments leaves the fuel used by foreign trucks out of the expenditures of non-residents. This may lead to the slightly distorted proportions while distributing fuel excise duty between Estonian households and non-residents categories.
It has to be clarified to what extent the fuel excise duty of non-residents in environmental taxes accounts covers tourists and foreign enterprises.
Methodology for calculating fuel excise duty of non-residents in environmental taxes account may need to be refined in future environmental taxes account in order to compile more exact data on non-residents.
13.2. Sampling error
Not applicable.
13.2.1. Sampling error - indicators
Not applicable.
13.3. Non-sampling error
There are no big deficiencies in our own opinion in the methodology for the compilation of environmental taxes account.
13.3.1. Coverage error
Not applicable.
13.3.1.1. Over-coverage - rate
Not applicable.
13.3.1.2. Common units - proportion
Not applicable.
13.3.2. Measurement error
Not applicable.
13.3.3. Non response error
Not applicable.
13.3.3.1. Unit non-response - rate
Not applicable.
13.3.3.2. Item non-response - rate
Not applicable.
13.3.4. Processing error
There are no big deficiencies in our own opinion in the methodology for the compilation of environmental taxes account. No big issues regarding data processing occur.However the estimation of fuel excise duty paid by non-residents has been difficult because of the lack of coherent basic data sources.
13.3.5. Model assumption error
Not applicable.
14.1. Timeliness
Up to 2019 the average production time was 21 month. Since 2024 the preliminary data were produced 14 month after year concerned.
14.1.1. Time lag - first result
Preliminary first results are not calculated separately from final results.
14.1.2. Time lag - final result
The final results for year 2023 were available at the middle of June 2025
14.2. Punctuality
Data were delivered on 13th of June
14.2.1. Punctuality - delivery and publication
Not applicable.
15.1. Comparability - geographical
Estonia does not compile Environmental Tax Accounts on regional or couty level. All basic data used for compilation of ETEA are only on national level also.
15.1.1. Asymmetry for mirror flow statistics - coefficient
Not applicable.
15.2. Comparability - over time
There are no limitations in the use of data for comparisons over time. The same methodics and the same data sources were used for ETEA compilation over all years.
15.2.1. Length of comparable time series
The comparable time series cover the years from 2008 to 2023.
15.2.2. Comparability - over time detailed
Tax type
Reference period
Reasons for breaks
Energy tax
2008-2023
No breaks
Pollution tax
2008-2023
No breaks
Resource tax
2008-2023
No breaks
Transport tax
2008-2023
No breaks
15.3. Coherence - cross domain
To ensure that new environmental taxes are adequately captured in the national tax list and labelled correctly the specialist from government finance statistics will inform the specialist compiling environmental taxes account about new taxes in the national tax list that might be considered as environmental taxes. The specialist responsible for the compilation of environmental taxes has also access to tax data in the national tax list for possible feedback.
15.3.1. Coherence - sub annual and annual statistics
Subannual statistics on environmental taxes is not compiled in Estonia.
15.3.2. Coherence - National Accounts
To ensure that new environmental taxes are adequately captured in the national tax list and labelled correctly the specialist from government finance statistics will inform the specialist compiling environmental taxes account about new taxes in the national tax list that might be considered as environmental taxes. The specialist responsible for the compilation of environmental taxes has also access to tax data in the national tax list for possible feedback.
15.3.2.1. Coherence - National Accounts detailed
Tax type
Discrepancy
Size of discrepancy
Reasons
Energy tax
No discrepancy
Transport tax
No discrepancy
Pollution tax
No discrepancy
Resource tax
No discrepancy
15.4. Coherence - internal
No changes in data sources occur in 2025. The same data sources and the same methodics were used to compile ETEA during all time series.
0,5
17.1. Data revision - policy
Allocation of environmental taxes made before supply and use tables are redy will be revised when supply and use table become available. Supply and use tables in Estonia will be ready in T+36.
Revision of Environment Tax Aaccounts data will be made the next year after SUT tables will be available.
17.2. Data revision - practice
Supply and use tables in Estonia will be ready in T+36. The allocation of environmental taxes for the years 2022-2023 is done before supply and use tables are ready.
This concern especially fuel and electricity excise duties, which were allocated using a benchmark developed on the basis of the previous environmental taxes account and using up-to-date energy statistics. Allocation of fuel/electricity excise duty for, 2022 and 2023 was made using SUT 2021 combined with the factors reflecting the change of fuel/electricity consumption from energy statistics. Benchmark was calculated for electricity and for every fuel.
Allocation of environmental taxes made before supply and use tables are ready will be revised when supply and use table become available.
Small revisions are made in the case when government finance statistics are revised.
17.2.1. Data revision - average size
Allocation of environmental taxes made before supply and use tables will be revised when supply and use table become available. Revision causes small changes in allocation of taxes between economic activities.
17.2.2. Status of data
Supply and use tables in Estonia will be ready in T+36. The allocation of environmental taxes for the years 2022-2023 is done before supply and use tables are ready.
This concern especially fuel and electricity excise duties, which were allocated using a benchmark developed on the basis of the previous environmental taxes account and using up-to-date energy statistics. Allocation of fuel/electricity excise duty for 2022 and 2023 was made using SUT 2021 combined with the factors reflecting the change of fuel/electricity consumption from energy statistics. Benchmark was calculated for electricity and for every fuel.
Allocation of environmental taxes made before supply and use tables will be revised when supply and use table become available.
In 2025 data delivery data for 2022 and 2023 are marked with comment: „Data will be revised in line with the revisions of national accounts e.g. then the finalised supply and use tables will become available“. Data for 2021 are revised compared to the last data delivery in accordance of SUT 2021 tables.
18.1. Source data
Data on revenues of environmental taxes are received from government finance statistics.
Database of declared environmental fees from the Estonian Tax and Customs Board was used as a base for allocating air pollution fee, water pollution fee, waste disposal feeand water abstraction fee.
Allocation of heavy goods vehicle tax was based on the proportions according to the data of declared heavy goods vehicle tax from Estonian Tax and Customs Board.
Data on the activities indicated in the database of declared commercial fishing fee from Estonian Agricultre and Food Board was used to allocate the revenues of commercial fishing fee.
Data on revenue from the sale of emission permits and other CO2 tax were recieved from Ministry of Environment.
The database of firstly registered cars from Estonian Road Administration was used to calculate the car registration fee .
Liquid fuel stockpiling fee was calcukated based on data of Estonian Oil Stockpiling Agency.
18.1.1. Source data detailed
(D2122C
Tax Name/ESA Code
Source data for compiling tax revenue by payer
Energy taxes
Fuel excise (D2122C)
SUT tables
Electricity excise (D2122C)
SUT tables
Liquid fuel stockpiling fee (D2122C)
SUT tables
Revenue from the sale of emission permits (D29F)
The revenue is allocated to economic activities based on the number of surrendered permits by Estonian companies. Data of Ministry of Environment.
Transport taxes
Car registration fee (D214D)
The database of firstly registered cars from Estonian Road Administration
Heavy Goods Vehicle Tax (D29B)
Data of declared heavy goods vehicle tax from Estonian Tax and Customs Board.
Database of declared environmental fees from the Estonian Tax and Customs Board
Package excise (D2122C)
All package excise was appointed to households
Other CO2 tax
Database of polution permits of Ministry of Environment
Resource taxes
Water abstraction fee (D29H)
Database of declared environmental fees from the Estonian Tax and Customs Board
Fee on fishing (D29H)
The database of declared commercial fishing fee from Estonian Veterinary and Food Board
18.2. Frequency of data collection
The source data are collected annually
18.3. Data collection
Data from ohter teams of Statistics Estonia (National Accounts, government finance statistics, energy statistics, foreign trade statistics) are recieved as customised data extractions at request, Data from ohter organisations are recieved according agreements with these organisetions according to an agreed schedule once the year.
All data were recieved on schedule.
18.4. Data validation
For validation the data were compared with the statistics of previous years.
If possible, the statistics was cross-checked with other relevant data (both internal and external).In case of inconsistencies in the statistics the reasons were investigated.
The control checks implemented into ETEA Questionnaire 2025 were used for detecting potential errors or inconsistencies before the data were transmitted to Eurostat.
18.5. Data compilation
Database of declared environmental fees from the Estonian Tax and Customs Board was used as a base for allocating air pollution fee, water pollution fee, waste disposal feeand water abstraction fee. Every enterprise was appended with the activity code from supply and use tables and then proportions of declared taxes by activities were used to allocate the revenues of environmental fees.
Allocation of heavy goods vehicle tax was based on the proportions according to the data of declared heavy goods vehicle tax from Estonian Tax and Customs Board.
Data on the activities indicated in the database of declared commercial fishing fee from Estonian Veterinary and Food Board was used to allocate the revenues of commercial fishing fee. However, in this database there were also enterprises that did not have any relation to fishing, so this part of fishing fee was allocated under NACE 03 (as fishing for own final use). The sum of revenues of recreational fishing fee was allocated also under NACE 03 (as fishing for own final use).
From 2014 there is a new environmental tax in Estonia – revenue from the sale of emission permits. Revenue from the sale of emission permits is reported under energy taxes. The revenue is allocated to economic activities based on the number of surrendered permits by Estonian companies. It is presumed that all permits bought from the Estonian government are bought by Estonian enterprises. While this presumption may not be correct, there is no way of determining it as the emission permit auctions are blind.
Environmental taxes as taxes on products (D.21)
Allocation of environmental taxes, which are taxes on products according to ESA, was more complex than the allocation of taxes on production.
Car registration fee is paid once, when a car is entered into the Estonian Traffic Register for the first time. The database of firstly registered cars from Estonian Road Administration was used to calculate the number of firstly registered passenger cars in activities and these proportions were applied for the allocation of these tax revenues. Cars owned by banks and leasing companies were reallocated to other economic activities.
Packaging excise duty was entirely allocated under households` sector. Packaging excise duty has insignificant revenues in the state budget.
Allocation of fuel and electricity excise duties was the most complex. There were two main data sources for allocating excise duties on fuel and electricity: expenditures data on fuel/electricity consumption from supply and use tables and amounts of consumed fuel/electricity from energy statistics. As enterprises exempted from excise duty usually have to have exemption permits, Estonian Tax and Customs Board’s database of excise exemption permits was used for calculating fuel amounts exempted from excise duty.
In supply and use tables fuel and electricity excise duty are divided between the following eight product groups:
electricity (1.D.351)
gasoline (1.C.192021)
diesel fuel, kerosene, aviation gasoline, other fuel oils and gases (except oil-shale fuel); lubricating petroleum oils (1.C.192022)
oil-shale fuel and gas (1.C.192028)
propane and butane, liquefied; other petroleum gases (1.C.19203)
coal (1.B.05)
oil shale (1.B.063)
natural gas (1.D.352)
natural gas for the engine (1.B.0621)
Usually each product group is linked to only one fuel, which is taxed with one tax rate. An exception is the so-called diesel group (1.C.192022), which refers to several fuels: diesel fuel used for transport, diesel fuel used for other purposes, light heating oil, heavy fuel oil, aviation gasoline and petroleum (jet fuel), lubricants. And each fuel has its own excise duty rate (lubricants are not taxed with fuel excise duty).- other fuels (industrial gases, dyes and pigments, metalloids, and other inorganic basic chemicals; hydrocarbons, ethers, enzymes and other organic chemicals; plastics and synthetic rubber in primary forms) (1.C.2011)
Government finance statistics provides revenues of fuel excise duty by every fuel. Fuel and electricity excise duties were allocated into activities separately for each fuel.
Expenditures on consumed fuel/electricity in supply and use tables gave an input for the allocation of the excise duty.
Liquid fuel stockpiling fee was added to environmental taxes under energy taxes from the year 2010. Liquid fuel stockpiling fee is divided between the following product groups:
gasoline (1.C.192021)
diesel fuel, kerosene, aviation gasoline, heavy fuel oil (1.C.192022)
The liquid fuel stockpiling fee is allocated proportionally to economic activities based on the allocation of fuel excise duty in the corresponding product groups.
For allocation of gasoline a different methodology was used compared to other fuels as there are no tax exemptions for users. Excise duty ongasoline is distributed proportionally to the final consumption expenditures
18.5.1. Imputation - rate
Not applicable.
18.5.2. Use of imputation methods
Tax type
Reference years
Method for breaking down revenue to payer
Tax type
Reference years
Method for breaking down revenue to payer
Fuel excise (D2122C)
2008 - 2022
The total revenue received from government finance statistics was breaked down by economic activities according to SUT 2020 tables. Data for years 2020- were updated according to SUT 2020. No changes in methodology were done.
Electricity excise (D2122C)
2008 - 2022
The total revenue received from government finance statistics was breaked down by economic activities according to SUT 2020 tables. Data for years 2020- were updated according to SUT 2020. No changes in methodology were done.
Liquid fuel stockpiling fee (D2122C)
2008 - 2022
The total revenue received from government finance statistics was breaked down by economic activities according to SUT 2020 tables. Data for years 2020- were updated according to SUT 2020. No changes in methodology were done.
Revenue from the sale of emission permits (D29F)
2014 - 2022
The total revenue received from government finance statistics was breaked down by economic activities according to SUT 2020 tables. Data for years 2020- were updated according to SUT 2020. No changes in methodology were done.
Car registration fee (D214D)
2008 - 2022
The database of firstly registered cars from Estonian Road Administration was used to calculate the number of firstly registered passenger cars in activities and these proportions were applied for the allocation of tax revenue. Cars owned by banks and leasing companies were reallocated to other economic activities.
Heavy Goods Vehicle Tax (D29B)
2008 - 2022
Heavy goods vehicle tax was allocated based on the proportions according to the data of declared heavy goods vehicle tax from Estonian Tax and Customs Board. No changes in methodology were done.
Database of declared environmental fees from the Estonian Tax and Customs Board was used as a base for allocating air pollution fee, water pollution fee and waste disposal fee. Every enterprise was appended with the activity code from supply and use tables and then proportions of declared taxes by activities were used to allocate the revenues of environmental fees. No changes in methodology were done.
Package excise (D2122C)
2008 - 2022
Packaging excise duty was entirely allocated under households` sector
Water abstraction fee (D29H)
2008 - 2022
Database of declared environmental fees from the Estonian Tax and Customs Board was used as a base for allocating water abstraction fee. Every enterprise was appended with the activity code from supply and use tables and then proportions of declared taxes by activities were used to allocate the revenues of environmental fees. No changes in methodology were done.
Fee on fishing (D29H)
2008 - 2022
Data of Estonian Agriculture and Food Board was used to allocate the revenues of commercial fishing fee. However, in this database there were also enterprises that did not have any relation to fishing, so this part of fishing fee was allocated under NACE 03 (as fishing for own final use). The sum of revenues of recreational fishing fee was allocated also under NACE 03 (as fishing for own final use).No changes in methodology were done.
18.5.3. Compilation of estimations
Supply and use tables in Estonia will be ready in T+36. So the allocation of environmental taxes for the years 2022-2023 is done before supply and use tables are ready.
For the allocation of tax data when the supply and use tables (SUT) are not ready basically the same methodology as the one applied for the SUT years was used for the compilation of environmental taxes account.
Only exceptions were fuel and electricity excise duties, which were allocated using a benchmark developed on the basis of the previous environmental taxes account and using up-to-date energy statistics. In other words: allocation of fuel/electricity excise duty in SUT year was combined with the factors reflecting the change of fuel/electricity consumption from energy statistics. Benchmark was calculated for electricity and for every fuel.
Allocation of environmental taxes made before supply and use tables will be revised when supply and use table become available.
18.5.4. Compilation of revenue payable by non-residents
Non-residents pay fuel excise duty while tanking fuel in Estonia. Our estimation of fuel excise duty paid by non-residents is based on data from tourism satellite account. Tourism satellite account provides data on non-resident’s expenditures on motors fuels and their paid fuel excise duty. To make the necessary breakdown between petrol and transport diesel in non-residents’ fuel excise duty in the environmental taxes account, the overall division of households’ excise duty between these fuels was used.
18.5.5. Compilation of revenue broken down by payer for years before 2008
The Envitonment Tax Accounts for years before 2008 were not compiled
18.6. Adjustment
Adjustments was not performed.
18.6.1. Seasonal adjustment
Not applicable.
We consulted the collegues from National Accounts team about confidentiality of ETEA data. We decided to remove confidentiality flags from resources and pollution taxes data of years 2008-2020, as these data are not considered confidential by NA.
Data presents environmental tax revenue (by tax category - energy, transport, pollution and resource taxes) broken down by economic activity (tax payer), using the NACE classification for production activities extended to cover taxes payable by households and non-residents.
Data presents also tables of ETS CO2 taxes and other CO2 taxes broken down by economic activity.
13 June 2025
The environmental tax statistics are compiled based on Eurostat’s 2013 'Environmental taxes - a statistical guide'. Environmental tax is defined as "A tax whose tax base is a physical unit (or a proxy of a physical unit) of something that has a proven, specific negative impact on the environment, and which is identified in ESA2010 as a tax".
Environmental tax statistics are part of European environmental economic accounts, which constitute satellite accounts to national accounts. Thus, environmental tax statistics follows ESA2010 definition of ‘taxes’. Consequently, only payments that are identified as taxes in the national accounts can be reported as environmental taxes whereas other types of payments to government are not excluded from the scope of the data collection. Compliance with the tax definition of the national accounts improves international comparability of the statistics, and is in line with the guidance, concepts and definitions of the System of environmental and economic accounting (SEEA).
Data refer to environmental taxes collected by the government and payable by the different economic agents.
The target population are all production sectors by NACE, households as consumers and non-residents.
Estonia
The data refer to the calendar years.
There are no big deficiencies in our own opinion in the methodology for the compilation of environmental taxes account. However the estimation of fuel excise duty paid by non-residents has been difficult because of the lack of coherent basic data sources. Non-residents data from tourism satellite account were used for the calculation of fuel excise duty of non-residents. Tourism satellite account is based on the data of expenditures of non-residents in Estonia derived from Estonian Balance of Payments. Estonian Balance of Payments leaves the fuel used by foreign trucks out of the expenditures of non-residents. This may lead to the slightly distorted proportions while distributing fuel excise duty between Estonian households and non-residents categories.
It has to be clarified to what extent the fuel excise duty of non-residents in environmental taxes accounts covers tourists and foreign enterprises.
Methodology for calculating fuel excise duty of non-residents in environmental taxes account may need to be refined in future environmental taxes account in order to compile more exact data on non-residents.
Million National Currency (MNAC)
Database of declared environmental fees from the Estonian Tax and Customs Board was used as a base for allocating air pollution fee, water pollution fee, waste disposal feeand water abstraction fee. Every enterprise was appended with the activity code from supply and use tables and then proportions of declared taxes by activities were used to allocate the revenues of environmental fees.
Allocation of heavy goods vehicle tax was based on the proportions according to the data of declared heavy goods vehicle tax from Estonian Tax and Customs Board.
Data on the activities indicated in the database of declared commercial fishing fee from Estonian Veterinary and Food Board was used to allocate the revenues of commercial fishing fee. However, in this database there were also enterprises that did not have any relation to fishing, so this part of fishing fee was allocated under NACE 03 (as fishing for own final use). The sum of revenues of recreational fishing fee was allocated also under NACE 03 (as fishing for own final use).
From 2014 there is a new environmental tax in Estonia – revenue from the sale of emission permits. Revenue from the sale of emission permits is reported under energy taxes. The revenue is allocated to economic activities based on the number of surrendered permits by Estonian companies. It is presumed that all permits bought from the Estonian government are bought by Estonian enterprises. While this presumption may not be correct, there is no way of determining it as the emission permit auctions are blind.
Environmental taxes as taxes on products (D.21)
Allocation of environmental taxes, which are taxes on products according to ESA, was more complex than the allocation of taxes on production.
Car registration fee is paid once, when a car is entered into the Estonian Traffic Register for the first time. The database of firstly registered cars from Estonian Road Administration was used to calculate the number of firstly registered passenger cars in activities and these proportions were applied for the allocation of these tax revenues. Cars owned by banks and leasing companies were reallocated to other economic activities.
Packaging excise duty was entirely allocated under households` sector. Packaging excise duty has insignificant revenues in the state budget.
Allocation of fuel and electricity excise duties was the most complex. There were two main data sources for allocating excise duties on fuel and electricity: expenditures data on fuel/electricity consumption from supply and use tables and amounts of consumed fuel/electricity from energy statistics. As enterprises exempted from excise duty usually have to have exemption permits, Estonian Tax and Customs Board’s database of excise exemption permits was used for calculating fuel amounts exempted from excise duty.
In supply and use tables fuel and electricity excise duty are divided between the following eight product groups:
electricity (1.D.351)
gasoline (1.C.192021)
diesel fuel, kerosene, aviation gasoline, other fuel oils and gases (except oil-shale fuel); lubricating petroleum oils (1.C.192022)
oil-shale fuel and gas (1.C.192028)
propane and butane, liquefied; other petroleum gases (1.C.19203)
coal (1.B.05)
oil shale (1.B.063)
natural gas (1.D.352)
natural gas for the engine (1.B.0621)
Usually each product group is linked to only one fuel, which is taxed with one tax rate. An exception is the so-called diesel group (1.C.192022), which refers to several fuels: diesel fuel used for transport, diesel fuel used for other purposes, light heating oil, heavy fuel oil, aviation gasoline and petroleum (jet fuel), lubricants. And each fuel has its own excise duty rate (lubricants are not taxed with fuel excise duty).- other fuels (industrial gases, dyes and pigments, metalloids, and other inorganic basic chemicals; hydrocarbons, ethers, enzymes and other organic chemicals; plastics and synthetic rubber in primary forms) (1.C.2011)
Government finance statistics provides revenues of fuel excise duty by every fuel. Fuel and electricity excise duties were allocated into activities separately for each fuel.
Expenditures on consumed fuel/electricity in supply and use tables gave an input for the allocation of the excise duty.
Liquid fuel stockpiling fee was added to environmental taxes under energy taxes from the year 2010. Liquid fuel stockpiling fee is divided between the following product groups:
gasoline (1.C.192021)
diesel fuel, kerosene, aviation gasoline, heavy fuel oil (1.C.192022)
The liquid fuel stockpiling fee is allocated proportionally to economic activities based on the allocation of fuel excise duty in the corresponding product groups.
For allocation of gasoline a different methodology was used compared to other fuels as there are no tax exemptions for users. Excise duty ongasoline is distributed proportionally to the final consumption expenditures
Data on revenues of environmental taxes are received from government finance statistics.
Database of declared environmental fees from the Estonian Tax and Customs Board was used as a base for allocating air pollution fee, water pollution fee, waste disposal feeand water abstraction fee.
Allocation of heavy goods vehicle tax was based on the proportions according to the data of declared heavy goods vehicle tax from Estonian Tax and Customs Board.
Data on the activities indicated in the database of declared commercial fishing fee from Estonian Agricultre and Food Board was used to allocate the revenues of commercial fishing fee.
Data on revenue from the sale of emission permits and other CO2 tax were recieved from Ministry of Environment.
The database of firstly registered cars from Estonian Road Administration was used to calculate the car registration fee .
Liquid fuel stockpiling fee was calcukated based on data of Estonian Oil Stockpiling Agency.
Data are published once a year.
Up to 2019 the average production time was 21 month. Since 2024 the preliminary data were produced 14 month after year concerned.
Estonia does not compile Environmental Tax Accounts on regional or couty level. All basic data used for compilation of ETEA are only on national level also.
There are no limitations in the use of data for comparisons over time. The same methodics and the same data sources were used for ETEA compilation over all years.
