EU budget for 2025: Council and Parliament reach agreement

Brussels: The Council and the European Parliament today reached agreement on the EU’s annual budget for 2025. Next year’s budget strongly focuses on the EU’s main policy priorities and addresses the currently difficult geopolitical context.

Total commitments are set at €192.768,6 million and the total payments at €149.615,7 million, excluding appropriations foreseen for special instruments outside the MFF.

€800,5 million have been kept available this year under the expenditure ceilings of the current multiannual financial framework for 2021-2027, allowing the EU to react to unforeseeable needs.

We have agreed on a balanced budget that gives us the means to deliver on the EU’s priority areas, while keeping the interest of taxpayers in mind. Next year’s budget ensures a prudent approach keeping enough financial leeway to respond to unforeseen circumstances. This is a realistic approach taking into account the current economic and geopolitical context and the need to accommodate new challenges that may arise in 2025. Furthermore, the agreement provides the necessary financing for the reconstruction of countries affected by natural disasters.

Commitments are legally-binding promises to spend money on activities that are implemented over several financial years.

Payments cover expenditure arising from commitments entered into the EU budget during the current or preceding financial years.

The EU budget for 2025 amounts to €199.438,4 million in total commitments and €155.209,3 million in total payments when including the appropriations foreseen for special instruments outside the MFF.

The European Parliament and the Council now have 14 days to formally approve the agreement reached. The Council is expected to endorse it on 25 November. Adoption of the budget requires a qualified majority within the Council.

The Commission, in its initial draft budget for 2025, formally adopted on 12 July 2024, set total commitments at €193.046,9 million and the total payments at €147.090,5 million, excluding appropriations foreseen for special instruments outside the MFF.

The Council, in its position adopted on 13 September 2024, set the total commitments at €191.527,0 million and the total payments at €146.214,6 million, excluding appropriations foreseen for special instruments outside the MFF.

The European Parliament, in its amendments adopted on 23 October 2024, set total commitments at €194.282,3 million and total payments at €147.897,2 million, excluding appropriations foreseen for special instruments outside the MFF.

On 10 October 2024, the Commission adopted an amending letter to the draft general budget that decreases the level of commitments by €303 million and increases the level of payments by €2.657 million.

After the European Parliament adopted its amendments to the draft budget, the Council stated its disagreement with the Parliament’s proposals. Consequently, a meeting of the Conciliation Committee was convened. This year, the conciliation procedure takes place from 29 October to Monday 18 November.

The Conciliation Committee is composed of the representatives of the 27 member states and 27 members of the European Parliament, with the Commission acting as an honest broker working towards reconciling the positions of the two branches of the Budgetary Authority.

This is the fifth annual budget under the EU’s long-term budget, the multiannual financial framework (MFF) for 2021-2027. The 2025 budget is complemented by actions to support the COVID-19 recovery under NextGenerationEU, the EU’s plan to recover from the pandemic.