Stability Council expects German debt ratio of just over 78 percent by 2030
Germany will breach the EU deficit limit for several years, according to the joint federal-state body. Finance Minister Klingbeil defends the borrowing for infrastructure and the military.
Symbolic image · Photo: Perituss / Wikimedia Commons, CC0 (cropped and resized)
Germany's public debt is likely to rise significantly by 2030. The Stability Council, a joint body of the federal government and the states, expects a debt ratio of 78.25 percent of economic output in 2030, up from 62.8 percent in 2025, Reuters reported. The EU ceiling is 60 percent. The figures presented on Monday are considerably worse than a year ago.
The general government deficit stood at 2.9 percent of gross domestic product in 2025. It is expected to rise to 5.25 percent next year and still be 4.5 percent in 2030, against a permitted 3 percent. The Stability Council considers a breach of the rules lasting several years worrying. Most of the new borrowing goes into repairing infrastructure and rearming the Bundeswehr.
Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil (SPD) said the heavy borrowing was needed to clear the investment backlog and that doing nothing would cost much more in the long run. The government wants to push reforms, including on pensions and long-term care, and to save in the budget. "At the same time, we continue to keep a very close eye on the sustainability of our finances," he said.