Greek State Budget Records Surplus of €2.19 Billion in January–July 2025

Greece posted a surplus of 2.188 billion euros in its state budget balance during the period January to July 2025, according to provisional execution data on a modified cash basis released by the Ministry of Finance. This marks a sharp turnaround compared to the target for a deficit of 1.961 billion euros set in the 2025 Budget report, as well as a deficit of 139 million euros recorded during the same seven-month period in 2024.

The primary result on a modified cash basis reached a surplus of 7.959 billion euros, far exceeding the target of 3.599 billion euros and also above the primary surplus of 5.665 billion euros posted in the corresponding period of 2024.

The Finance Ministry clarified that “the amount of 2.208 billion euros related to the deferral of transfer payments of the regular budget and the amount of 605 million euros related to the deferral of payments for armament programs do not affect the result of the General Government in fiscal terms.” It further noted that an additional 342 million euros in tax revenues for the first two months of the year are fiscally attributed to 2024. Excluding these adjustments, the excess in the primary result compared with budget targets is estimated at 1.203 billion euros.

The ministry stressed that the primary result in fiscal terms differs from the cash-based result and emphasized that the figures released refer to the Central Administration and not the broader General Government, which also includes the fiscal outcomes of Legal Entities as well as Local and Regional Authorities.

Data showed that net state budget revenues between January and July amounted to 42.858 billion euros, surpassing the target by 822 million euros or 2.0% compared to the level projected in the 2025 Budget.

This figure incorporates both revenue, under “Sales of goods and services,” and tax refunds (VAT), amounting to 784.8 million euros, linked to transactions carried out in January 2025 for the completion of the new Attica Tollway Concession Agreement. These transactions, which pertain to the year 2024, are fiscally neutral.

“This increase is observed, even though the target of the introductory report included the collection in June of the price of 1,350 million euros from the Service Concession Agreement for the financing, operation, maintenance and exploitation of the Egnatia Motorway and the three (3) vertical road axes, which was signed on March 29, 2024, between, on the one hand, the Greek State and the HRADF (now EESYP) and, on the other hand, the company ‘NEA EGNATIA ODOS S.A.’ as Concessionaire. The next steps in the process until the payment of the price are expected to be completed in the coming months. Excluding the above amount, net revenues show an increase of 2,172 million euros or 5.3% compared to the target, mainly due to increased tax revenues,” the ministry underlined.

Tax revenues for the period stood at 40.556 billion euros, exceeding the target by 2.273 billion euros or 5.9%. The overperformance stemmed both from stronger tax collections in the current year and from improved income tax receipts from the previous year that were paid in installments up to February 2025.

Revenue refunds totaled 5.045 billion euros, a figure that includes the VAT refund of 784.8 million euros linked to the Attica Tollway Concession Agreement, which is fiscally attributed to 2024. Excluding this, tax refunds amounted to 4.260 billion euros, 252 million euros above the target of 4.008 billion euros set in the 2025 Budget.

Public Investment Plan (PDE) revenues reached 2.352 billion euros, falling short of the target of 2.555 billion euros by 203 million euros.

For July 2025 alone, net state budget revenues came in at 8.477 billion euros, exceeding the monthly target by 338 million euros. Tax revenues reached 8.348 billion euros, a modest 37 million euros or 0.4% above the goal. Refunds amounted to 673 million euros, which was 20 million euros below the 693 million euro target. PDE revenues for the month were 429 million euros, significantly above the target of 55 million euros, showing an increase of 374 million euros.

On the expenditure side, state budget outlays for the January–July period amounted to 40.671 billion euros, lower by 3.326 billion euros compared to the target of 43.997 billion euros in the 2025 Budget. However, this represented an increase of 1.345 billion euros relative to the same period in 2024.

Within the Regular Budget, payments were reduced compared to the target by 3.292 billion euros, primarily due to the postponement of transfer payments to social security funds (OKA) and other general government bodies amounting to 2.208 billion euros, along with deferred armament program payments totaling 605 million euros. The ministry reiterated that these amounts “do not affect the result of the General Government in fiscal terms.”

Finally, investment expenditures reached 6.131 billion euros, slightly lower by 34 million euros compared to the 2025 Budget target but 32 million euros higher than investment spending during the same period in 2024.

By fLEXI tEAM