In 2026, EUROMOD — the European Union’s tax‑benefit microsimulation model — marks its 30th anniversary. Established in 1996 as an academic prototype, the model has grown into a central pillar of European social policy analysis. Today, EUROMOD provides a harmonized and transparent framework for assessing the distributional and fiscal effects of tax‑benefit policies across EU Member States and partner countries. Its evidence has shaped national debates, informed EU‑level policymaking, and contributed to a deeper understanding of income distribution, poverty, labor market incentives, and redistribution.

Over the past three decades, EUROMOD has inspired a vast body of academic research and institutional analysis, producing hundreds of peer‑reviewed articles and policy reports. This anniversary volume takes stock of that achievement. It documents the historical evolution of EUROMOD, explains how the model is used in policy processes across Europe, and highlights methodological innovations and future directions in microsimulation.

Bringing together leading scholars and practitioners, the contributions offer a dual perspective: a retrospective account of how EUROMOD became a cornerstone of social policy assessment, and a forward‑looking exploration of the model’s next 30 years. The volume includes a curated selection of influential EUROMOD‑based studies — spanning diverse topics, countries, and periods — reprinted from leading peer‑reviewed journals to showcase the breadth and depth of the model’s scientific impact.

This book provides policymakers, researchers, and students with a unique resource on the development, application, and future potential of microsimulation in the EU. Documenting the foundations and evolution of a tool now used daily by researchers, statistical offices, and policymakers, this book celebrates EUROMOD’s enduring contribution to the science and practice of social policy analysis in Europe and beyond.

Francesco Figari is a full Professor of Public Finance at the University of Eastern Piedmont in Italy and a non-resident fellow at CeRP-Collegio Carlo Alberto, where he coordinates the Master's programme in Welfare: Theoretical Foundations and Data Analysis. He has been involved in developing EUROMOD since 2006, focusing particularly on labour supply modelling. He sits on the EUROMOD Scientific Advisory Board at the European Commission – JRC. His research focuses on analysing the redistributive effects of public policies, the behavioural impacts of policy changes and the resilience of welfare systems to economic crises across Europe. He has published work on poverty, taxation and European welfare systems in leading international journals.

Holly Sutherland is now emeritus Professor at the University of Essex. She was Director of EUROMOD until October 2018. She has over 30 years' experience designing, building and using such models — the UK model she helped develop in the mid-1980s was among the first anywhere — and has coordinated over 10 international EUROMOD-related projects, participating in many more. She has co-authored and edited five books on microsimulation modelling, and her research has been widely published in economics and social policy journals. She is passionate about making the power of  tax-benefit microsimulation genuinely accessible to all, to inform policy debates at every level, and everywhere.