France: public debt 2019-2027
A debt country
Public debt, also known as national debt, appears to be the difference between what a government is receiving and spending in a year. It is the accumulation of annual budget deficits, which happened when the government was spending more than receiving. Public debt in France is increasing since 2007, while the debt interest expenditure amounted to more than 45 billion euros in 2022.
France’s revenue and spending
Most of French public debt is generated by the State, in comparison with the social security system and the regional and local authorities. The budget balance of the country has been negative for years and does not appear to reach a positive one in the future. France spends most of its budget on tax repayments and abatement, as well as on education and defense. In 2021, France’s government spent more than 1.48 trillion euros, whereas its revenue amounted to 1.3 trillion euros. Non-tax revenue collected by the state came in majority from dividends, while it collected 70 billion euros by levying taxes on income and 140 billion euros through VAT in 2016.