The central government budget deficit for January–May 2026 amounted to 1.25 billion euros, compared to 4.85 billion euros a year earlier. The deficit thus decreased by approximately 3.6 billion euros.
However, a significant part of the improvement is explained by the consolidation of the State Housing Fund into the central government budget at the beginning of 2026, which increased revenues by around 3.9 billion euros. Adjusted for this, the deficit is effectively close to the previous year’s level.
Government revenues increased mainly due to higher tax revenues, which totaled about 30.2 billion euros, an increase of 0.8 billion euros. At the same time, expenditure continued to grow: operating expenses were approximately 5.8 billion euros, net transfer expenditure about 27.0 billion euros, and spending on wellbeing services counties around 12.1 billion euros.
Financial items weakened, with a net impact of approximately–0.7 billion euros, and government debt continued to increase, particularly long-term debt.
Overall, central government finances remained structurally in deficit in early 2026. Although reported figures show a clear improvement, this is largely explained by the consolidation of the State Housing Fund into the budget, which increased revenues without a corresponding improvement in the underlying fiscal position. The development therefore does not yet indicate a sustained improvement in fiscal balance.