Gross debt in Germany

Gross debt of the last 21 years in billion USD

This is how much debt Germany can afford

In accordance with the Maastricht Treaty, government debt in Germany is aggregated for the federal, state and local governments as well as state institutions, and therefore includes the debt of all public budgets. As it is gross debt, the government's assets are not deducted. According to the EU convergence criteria, each EU country must meet certain requirements. For the debt budget, these two conditions in particular are decisive:

• Consolidated gross debt may not exceed 60% of gross domestic product (GDP).
• The budget deficit, i.e. new annual debt, may not exceed 3% of GDP.

Between 2000 and 2021, Germany exceeded the 60% ceiling 18 times. The budget deficit exceeded the 3 percent limit 8 times. If a country repeatedly fails to comply with these limits, infringement proceedings can be initiated on the part of the EU. During the COVID years in particular, aid programs were launched in most countries to offset the consequences of the economic downturn. Around half of all EU countries were therefore unable to comply with these limits.

At the end of 2021, the debt of all EU countries averaged 92 percent.

Comparison of gross debt per capita with the European Union in U.S. dollars

      Germany       European Union

Budget deficit in Germany

The budget deficit of a country is the result of all its claims and liabilities. This includes incomes and expenses, repayments and building of new debts in other countries, but also domestic positions of the government, such as social insurance, local authorities and communities. It is the financial balance of the economic accounts. In simple terms: If a country at the end of the year has more money than at at the beginning, it is a surplus. If it is less, it is called a deficit.

The budget balance in Germany in the period between 1998 and 2022 varied between -168.54 billion euros and +77.50 billion euros. In 2022, Germany reached a balance of -106.70 billion euros.

In ratio to population, this equals a new indebtedness of 1,282 euros per capita in Germany in 2022. For comparison, the average debt per capita in the European Union in the same year was 1,254 euros.

Budget deficit and surplus in the last 24 years

(negative numbers = deficit)