Corruption costs the European Union hundreds of millions of euros every year and up to 6% of European GDP.

Omissions

• The claim states corruption costs the EU 'hundreds of millions of euros every year', but the actual estimated annual cost is EUR 179–990 billion, i.e. hundreds of BILLIONS — the absolute figure in the claim understates the magnitude by roughly a factor of 1,000 and is internally inconsistent with the 6%-of-GDP figure.
• The 'up to 6% of GDP' figure is the UPPER bound of a very wide range (EUR 179 billion to EUR 990 billion per year); the lower end of that range corresponds to roughly 1% of EU GDP, so the 6% is a maximum rather than a central estimate.
• The underlying estimate originates from a 2016 RAND Europe / European Parliament study ('Estimating the Cost of Non-Europe in the Area of Corruption'); the European Commission still reproduces the 'up to 6% of its GDP' formulation.
• An earlier European Commission (2014) figure put the cost at about EUR 120 billion per year (roughly 1% of EU GDP), showing how widely estimates vary.

Sources

• PrimaryEuropean Commission — Anti-corruption policy pageCorruption is estimated to cost the European Union between EUR 179 billion and EUR 990 billion per year, amounting to up to 6% of its GDP.
• AcademicRAND Europe — Estimating the Cost of Non-Europe in the Area of CorruptionCorruption costs the EU between €179bn and €990bn in GDP terms on an annual basis. Corruption in the EU has significant social costs and political costs.
• SecondaryPOLITICO — Corruption costs EU 'up to €990 billion a year'Corruption costs EU 'up to €990 billion a year'. The study found that corruption related to public procurement was estimated to cost nearly €5 billion per year.
• SecondaryEuropean Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) — Stepping up the EU's efforts to tackle corruptionIn a 2014 study, the European Commission estimated that corruption cost the EU economy about €120 billion per year.