Furthermore, unlike in the United States, we pay a significant amount of taxes. Let's say you earn €5000 per month. From your monthly salary, you'll have deduct

Furthermore, unlike in the United States, we pay a significant amount of taxes. Let's say you earn €5000 per month. From your monthly salary, you'll have deductions of 20% for income tax, 6.98% for mandatory health insurance, and 12.52% for government social insurance, totaling 39.5% in deductions, which leaves you with €3025. Additionally, for almost everything you buy, you'll pay a 21% VAT (Value Added Tax), reducing your effective spending power to €2390 (48% of what you earn!). There are also property taxes, but at the moment, they are relatively small, though there are plans to increase them significantly. Despite the average Lithuanian earning much less than the average American, we also pay more for energy. For example, petrol costs $5.83 per gallon and electricity is $0.30 per kWh, which is almost double!