Tax revenue as share of GDP in Timor-Leste
Timor-Leste: Tax revenue as share of GDP was 8.7% in 2016. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2016)
8.7%
Change on year
up 16.0%
World rank
164th
of 187 countries
All-time high
51.8%
in 2005
All-time low
4.7%
in 2001
Years of data
7
2001–2016
Tax revenue as share of GDP in Timor-Leste, 2001–2016
Source: UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2016, tax revenue as share of gdp in Timor-Leste stood at 8.7%.
That represents a change of up 16.0% on the previous year and down 83.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, tax revenue as share of gdp in Timor-Leste peaked at 51.8% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 4.7%, in 2001.
That places Timor-Leste 164th out of 187 countries with data for 2016, putting it in the bottom quarter.
Tax revenue as share of GDP in Timor-Leste, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 4.7% | — |
| 2002 | 5.2% | +12.5% |
| 2003 | 10.8% | +106.7% |
| 2004 | 14.2% | +31.7% |
| 2005 | 51.8% | +263.4% |
| 2015 | 7.5% | -85.5% |
| 2016 | 8.7% | +16.0% |
Timor-Leste compared with similar countries
- Timor-Leste's 8.7% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 14.9%, 58% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Timor-Leste's 8.7% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 18.1%, 48% of the median. (30 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 17.3% | 4.7% | 51.8% | 5 |
| 2010s | 8.1% | 7.5% | 8.7% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Timor-Leste
- 161 Gambia 9.5% compare
- 162 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 9.3% compare
- 163 Guinea-Bissau 9.2% compare
- 165 Comoros 8.2% compare
- 166 Niger 8.1% compare
- 167 Saudi Arabia 8.0% compare
More economy & growth data for Timor-Leste
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), gaps 4.50 million BoP, current US$ (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0024 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 3.21 BoP, current US$ per person (2024)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), gaps filled 253.24 million BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), annual 12.32 % change on previous year (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.1331 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 178.52 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), annual growth rate 8.99 % change on previous year (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), per unit of GDP 0.4471 includes gold, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), per capita 599.61 includes gold, current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is tax revenue as share of gdp in Timor-Leste?
- Tax revenue as share of gdp in Timor-Leste was 8.7% in 2016, according to UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest tax revenue as share of gdp recorded in Timor-Leste?
- The highest recorded value was 51.8% in 2005.
- What is the lowest tax revenue as share of gdp recorded in Timor-Leste?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.7% in 2001.
- How does Timor-Leste rank for tax revenue as share of gdp?
- Timor-Leste ranks 164th out of 187 countries with data for 2016.
- Is tax revenue as share of gdp rising or falling in Timor-Leste?
- Over the last ten years it is down 83.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Timor-Leste data come from?
- The figures come from UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Tax revenue as share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Direct and indirect taxes as well as social contributions included.