The time-honoured financing system of the European Union favours a certain looseness of budgetary responsibilities; while the increase of expenditures seems to be a purpose for itself for the European Commission and the European Parliament, the member states make their net balance the reason for their distinct positions on common policies.

By and large, the current own resources of the European Union formed by agricultural taxation, customs duties, VAT resource and the complementary resource on GDP correspond in fact to simple financial transfers of the member states into the communitarian budget.

The advantages of a reform of the own resource system are numerous despite the difficulties of implementation.

own resources, reform, unique communitarian taxation, net balance