General government reported a surplus of €0.2 billion in Quarter 3 (Q3) 2025, compared with €15.5 billion in Q3 2024. The large surplus in Q3 2024 was inflated by a one-off capital receipt arising from a Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruling.
Total general government revenue stood at €33 billion in Q3 2025, with taxes accounting for three quarters of all revenue.
General government expenditure increased year on year, reaching €32.8 billion in Q3 2025. This was €1.6 billion higher than Q3 2024.
Gross general government debt was almost €209 billion, or 32.8% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at the end of Q3 2025.
| Table 1.1 General Government Finances | ||||||||||||||
| 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | ||||||||||||
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | ||||
| Deficit/Surplus | ||||||||||||||
| Value | €bn | 0.4 | 1.3 | -0.3 | 5.8 | -0.7 | 3.0 | 15.5 | 5.1 | 0.9 | 2.5 | 0.2 | ||
| Percentage of quarterly GDP | % | 0.3 | 1.0 | -0.3 | 4.5 | -0.5 | 2.2 | 10.8 | 3.3 | 0.5 | 1.5 | 0.1 | ||
| Seasonally adjusted value | €bn | 2.6 | 1.4 | 1.2 | 1.9 | 1.5 | 2.9 | 17.1 | 1.3 | 3.3 | 2.2 | 1.9 | ||
| Gross Debt | ||||||||||||||
| Value | €bn | 222.5 | 221.9 | 221.4 | 219.1 | 214.1 | 215.2 | 215.9 | 215.4 | 206.2 | 207.2 | 209.0 | ||
| Percentage of annualised GDP | % | 42.0 | 41.5 | 41.8 | 41.8 | 40.7 | 40.5 | 40.0 | 38.3 | 34.5 | 33.4 | 32.8 | ||
| Net Debt | ||||||||||||||
| Value | €bn | 183.8 | 181.2 | 179.5 | 177.7 | 177.8 | 171.4 | 166.9 | 155.0 | 149.5 | 145.0 | 144.0 | ||
| Percentage of annualised GDP | % | 34.7 | 33.9 | 33.8 | 33.9 | 33.8 | 32.3 | 30.9 | 27.5 | 25.0 | 23.3 | 22.6 | ||
Expenditure was €1.6 billion higher than the same quarter in 2024, with a €0.6 billion (6.5%) rise in wages and salaries (compensation of employees) contributing to this increase. Elsewhere, there was an increase of €0.5 billion in social benefits, and a further rise of €0.4 billion in gross fixed capital formation (capital expenditure) (See Table 1.2).
This release includes seasonally adjusted figures for general government total revenue, total expenditure, and the balance (See Table 1.2). These figures are included to allow for the fact that some quarters of the year tend to be higher or lower than others due to seasonal factors. For example, for the fourth quarter in most years, expenditure tends to be higher. A comparison between the seasonally adjusted and non-seasonally adjusted balance is shown in Figure 1.1. For details regarding the methodology used in producing the seasonally adjusted series, please see Background Notes.
| GG Balance | SA GG Balance | |
| Q1 2023 | 0.4 | 2.6 |
| Q2 2023 | 1.3 | 1.4 |
| Q3 2023 | -0.3 | 1.2 |
| Q4 2023 | 5.8 | 1.9 |
| Q1 2024 | -0.7 | 1.5 |
| Q2 2024 | 3 | 2.9 |
| Q3 2024 | 15.5 | 17.1 |
| Q4 2024 | 5.1 | 1.3 |
| Q1 2025 | 0.9 | 3.3 |
| Q2 2025 | 2.5 | 2.2 |
| Q3 2025 | 0.2 | 1.9 |
General government gross debt increased slightly by €1.7 billion in the quarter to just under €209 billion. As a percentage of GDP this equates to 32.8%, 0.5 percentage points lower than Q2 levels, driven predominantly by movements in GDP.
Net debt, which takes into account government holdings of EDP assets, is just under €144 billion at the end of Q3 2025. The increase in debt liabilities was offset by increases in currency and deposits (AF.2) and debt securities (AF.3) assets resulting in a decrease of just under €1 billion in net debt in the quarter. At end Q3 2025 the net debt to GDP ratio stood at 22.6% down from 23.3% compared to Q2 2025.
| Gross Debt | Net Debt | |
| 2023 Q1 | 42 | 34.7 |
| 2023 Q2 | 41.5 | 33.9 |
| 2023 Q3 | 41.8 | 33.8 |
| 2023 Q4 | 41.8 | 33.9 |
| 2024 Q1 | 40.7 | 33.8 |
| 2024 Q2 | 40.5 | 32.3 |
| 2024 Q3 | 40 | 30.9 |
| 2024 Q4 | 38.3 | 27.5 |
| 2025 Q1 | 34.5 | 25 |
| 2025 Q2 | 33.4 | 23.3 |
| 2025 Q3 | 32.8 | 22.6 |
Government accounts are compiled in the EU according to the European System of National Accounts 2010 (ESA2010) framework.
This release contains quarterly Government Finance Statistics and is consistent with General Government Deficit and Debt levels reported at the end of September 2025 under the EU regulation governing the Excessive Deficit Procedure (EDP) and the annual Government Finance Statistics (October 2025 results).
Government Finance Statistics are benchmarked to the most recent EDP notification and so may not be fully aligned with the Quarterly National Accounts and related publications, such as the Institutional Sector Accounts.
The quarterly data presented includes updates to previously published series which reflects new and updated data.
A full description of the concepts and definitions used in the production of these statistics is provided in the Background Notes.
Learn about our data and confidentiality safeguards, and the steps we take to produce statistics that can be trusted by all.
Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (21 January 2026) published Government Finance Statistics Quarterly Results for Quarter 3 (Q3) 2025.
Commenting on the release, Paul McElvaney, Statistician in the Government Accounts Compilation & Outputs Division, said:
"Today’s results for Q3 2025 show that total government revenue stood at €33 billion, which was €13.6 billion lower than in Q3 2024. Last year’s revenue was particularly high due to a one-off capital receipt of €14.2 billion as a result of a Court of Justice of the European Union ruling. If you discount this item, there was a year-on-year increase of 2% across revenue. Taxes, which account for three quarters of all revenue in Q3 2025, rose by €0.3 billion, driven by VAT and income tax. Social contributions, which mainly comprise of PRSI receipts, rose by €0.4 billion over the same period.
Total government expenditure rose to €32.8 billion in Q3 2025, which was €1.6 billion higher than Q3 2024. This difference was across a range of items, with increases driven by pay, social benefits, capital expenditure, and the use of goods and services.
This resulted in a government surplus of €0.2 billion in Q3 2025."