Originally Posted by MikeJ

Taxation is (mostly) for the member states to decide. I think only the VAT (value added tax) rules come directly from the EU, and even the amount of that tax can be freely chosen by the members.

Each member state pays fees based on its GNP, VAT income and customs income. For example, in 2003, Finland paid the EU €1 billion in GNP-based fees, €300 million based on VAT and €100 million based on customs income, making a total membership fee of €1.4 billion. During the same year, Finland received a total of €1.33 billion in agricultural subsidies, structural funds, research money etc., meaning that the actual cost of the membership was €70 million.

Most of the new members receive a lot more than they pay, while the wealthier old members (Germany, France) pay a whole lot more than they receive.