EU countries by long-term unemployment rate

Greece had the highest long-term unemployment rate of 27 EU countries in 2015, at 16.4%. Sweden had the lowest, at 1.3%. The median was 3.6% and the figure for the European Union (27) was 4.9%. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

Highest16.4Greece

Lowest1.3Sweden

Median3.627 EU countries

European Union (27)4.9History

Map of EU countries, 2015

Under 2.4
2.4 to 3
3 to 4.4
4.4 to 7.3
7.3 and over

%, 2015. Source: Eurostat, Long-term unemployment as a percentage of the labour force, 15 to 74 years (une_ltu_a). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, 2015

%. Source: Eurostat, Long-term unemployment as a percentage of the labour force, 15 to 74 years (une_ltu_a). Retrieved 2026-10-18.

Full ranking

Rank	EU countries	2015 (%)	Change on 2014
1	Greece	16.4	-1.1 pts
2	Spain	11.4	-1.5 pts
3	Croatia	10.2	0 pts
4	Slovakia	8.8	-1.9 pts
5	Italy	7.4	-0.8 pts
5	Portugal	7.4	-1.3 pts
7	Cyprus	6.8	-0.9 pts
8	Bulgaria	6.3	-1.3 pts
9	Ireland	5.3	-1.3 pts
10	Latvia	4.9	-0.2 pts
11	Slovenia	4.7	-0.6 pts
12	Belgium	4	+0.1 pts
13	Lithuania	3.9	-0.9 pts
14	Romania	3.6	+0.2 pts
15	France	3.1	0 pts
16	Hungary	3	-0.6 pts
16	Poland	3	-0.9 pts
18	Finland	2.9	+0.5 pts
19	Malta	2.7	-0.2 pts
19	Netherlands	2.7	0 pts
21	Czechia	2.4	-0.3 pts
21	Estonia	2.4	-0.9 pts
23	Germany	2.1	-0.1 pts
24	Austria	2	+0.1 pts
25	Luxembourg Series break	1.9	+0.3 pts
26	Denmark	1.6	-0.1 pts
27	Sweden	1.3	0 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

People aged 15 to 74 who have been unemployed for 12 months or more, as a percentage of the labour force aged 15 to 74. Unemployment follows the ILO definition: without work, available to start within two weeks and actively seeking work.

A share of the labour force, not of the unemployed. From the EU labour force survey. Eurostat flags series breaks (most in 2021, under the new framework regulation for social statistics); they are stored as status break.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the EU countries are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Eurostat. Long-term unemployment as a percentage of the labour force, 15 to 74 years (une_ltu_a). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/une_ltu_a/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

Eurostat, European Commission. (2026). Long-term unemployment as a percentage of the labour force, 15 to 74 years (une_ltu_a) (EU countries by long-term unemployment rate, 2015) [Data set]. Retrieved October 18, 2026, from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/une_ltu_a/default/table

MLA 9

Long-term unemployment as a percentage of the labour force, 15 to 74 years (une_ltu_a), EU countries by long-term unemployment rate, 2015. Eurostat, European Commission, 10 Sept. 2026, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/une_ltu_a/default/table. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/long-term-unemployment-rate/eu-countries?period=2015. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. Long-term unemployment as a percentage of the labour force, 15 to 74 years (une_ltu_a). EU countries by long-term unemployment rate, 2015. Dataset. Accessed October 18, 2026. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/une_ltu_a/default/table. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/long-term-unemployment-rate/eu-countries?period=2015.

Harvard

Eurostat, European Commission (2026) Long-term unemployment as a percentage of the labour force, 15 to 74 years (une_ltu_a), EU countries by long-term unemployment rate, 2015 [Dataset]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/une_ltu_a/default/table, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/long-term-unemployment-rate/eu-countries?period=2015 (Accessed: 18 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_long_2015,
  author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
  title = {{Long-term unemployment as a percentage of the labour force, 15 to 74 years (une\_ltu\_a): EU countries by long-term unemployment rate, 2015}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/une_ltu_a/default/table},
  urldate = {2026-10-18},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/long-term-unemployment-rate/eu-countries?period=2015. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Long-term unemployment as a percentage of the labour force, 15 to 74 years (une\_ltu\_a). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/une\_ltu\_a/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.},
}

RIS

TY  - DATA
AU  - Eurostat, European Commission
TI  - Long-term unemployment as a percentage of the labour force, 15 to 74 years (une_ltu_a): EU countries by long-term unemployment rate, 2015
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/10
PB  - Eurostat, European Commission
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/une_ltu_a/default/table
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/long-term-unemployment-rate/eu-countries?period=2015
Y2  - 2026/10/18
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/long-term-unemployment-rate/eu-countries?period=2015.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Long-term unemployment as a percentage of the labour force, 15 to 74 years (une_ltu_a). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/une_ltu_a/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.
ER  -

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Rank EU countries by long-term unemployment rate using official data, and cite the source.

rank_places {"indicator":"long_term_unemployment_rate","level":"country","within":"European Union (27)","limit":10}
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Questions

Which EU country has the highest long-term unemployment rate?

Greece, with 16.4% in 2015, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which EU country has the lowest long-term unemployment rate?

Sweden, with 1.3% in 2015.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, Long-term unemployment as a percentage of the labour force, 15 to 74 years (une_ltu_a). Retrieved 2026-10-18.