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In 2025, Malta’s General Government deficit decreased to €545.3 million, equivalent to 2.2% of GDP, improving from 3.4% in 2024. Public debt rose to €11.4 billion, equal to 46.4% of GDP.

Malta closed 2025 with an improvement in its General Government balance. According to data published by the National Statistics Office, the General Government deficit stood at €545.3 million, equal to 2.2% of GDP. This represents a positive development compared to the previous year, when the deficit amounted to 3.4% of GDP. In absolute terms, the improvement compared with 2024 was €248.7 million.

The result was driven by an increase in revenue that exceeded the growth in expenditure. In 2025, total General Government revenue reached €8.55 billion, increasing by €736.2 million compared with 2024. Total public expenditure rose to €9.10 billion, up by €487.5 million over the same period.

The deficit-to-GDP ratio therefore improved by 1.2 percentage points compared with 2024. The reduction in the deficit is one of the key figures in the release, especially as it places Malta’s public balance below the 3% of GDP threshold set by the Maastricht criteria for monitoring public finances.

At the same time, General Government debt increased by €776.0 million compared with 2024, reaching €11.40 billion. As a percentage of GDP, debt rose from 45.9% in 2024 to 46.4% in 2025, marking a slight increase. Nevertheless, the figure remained below the 60% of GDP reference value established under the European framework.

To arrive at the final General Government balance, the document reports a series of adjustments to the Consolidated Fund result, which recorded a deficit of €823.9 million in 2025. These adjustments are needed to align the data with the European accrual-based methodology and also include Extra Budgetary Units and the Local Government sector.

The largest positive adjustment was related to time-adjusted cash transactions, amounting to €391.6 million. Another positive contribution came from Extra Budgetary Units, which recorded a surplus of €126.2 million, although this was €74.0 million lower than in 2024. Other positive elements included the difference between interest paid and accrued, equal to €9.8 million, and interest received from the sinking fund, amounting to €9.5 million.

On the negative side, the main adjustment concerned “Other accounts receivable and payable”, amounting to €147.9 million. The document also reports compensation to National Bank of Malta shareholders of €71.8 million, Treasury Clearance Fund flows of €8.1 million, payable tax credits of €8.0 million, and adjustments linked to rerouting operations and public-private partnerships of €4.5 million.

The National Statistics Office also notes that on 30 March 2026, Malta submitted its government deficit and debt data for the period 2022-2025 as part of the European Excessive Deficit Procedure. Compared with the previous submission in September 2025, the deficit was revised downwards for 2022 and 2024, while it was revised upwards for 2023. Debt estimates were also revised downwards for previous years following the availability of audited accounts from Extra Budgetary Units and local councils.

In 2025, Malta also recorded a stock-flow adjustment of 0.9% of GDP. This indicator shows that the increase in debt, equal to 3.2% of GDP, was higher than the deficit recorded in the same year. The trend was mainly influenced by increases in currency and deposits, as well as equity and investment fund shares.

Overall, the data point to an improvement in public finances on the deficit side, supported by revenue growth exceeding the rise in expenditure. Debt, however, continued to increase in absolute terms and also rose slightly as a percentage of GDP, while remaining below the European reference threshold.

ARTICLE WRITTEN BY NSO
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