fiscal surplus — Cyprus has recorded a fiscal surplus of €1.119 billion for the period from January to October 2025, which represents 3.1 per cent of the country’s GDP, according to preliminary figures released by the Statistical Service (Cystat).
This financial outcome shows a decrease from the surplus of €1.3209 billion, or 3.8 per cent of GDP, noted during the same timeframe in 2024. Despite this decline, total government revenue for the first ten months of 2025 rose by 5.6 per cent, reaching €12.33 billion, an increase of €658.5 million compared to the €11.67 billion reported in 2024.
Fiscal surplus: Growth in Tax Revenue
The increase in revenue was bolstered by a significant rise in income and wealth taxes, which climbed by €154.6 million, or 5.3 per cent, to €3.05 billion. Social contributions also saw a robust growth, surging by €296.3 million, or 8.2 per cent, to reach €3.91 billion.
Property income experienced a notable increase of 40.1 per cent, rising by €38.2 million to €133.5 million. Meanwhile, taxes on production and imports saw only a modest increase of 0.2 per cent, totalling €3.95 billion. Within this category, however, net VAT revenue dipped by €24.8 million, or 0.9 per cent, falling to €2.65 billion.
Revenue from the sale of goods and services showed an impressive rise of €137.4 million, equating to an 18.7 per cent increase, bringing the total to €871.3 million. Additionally, capital transfers soared by 64.9 per cent, amounting to €117.4 million, while current transfers saw a decline of €21.9 million, down 6.7 per cent to €304.6 million.
Increasing Expenditure Trends
On the expenditure side, the total spending for the January to October period in 2025 reached €11.21 billion, which is €860.4 million, or 8.3 per cent, higher than the €10.35 billion recorded in 2024. Key components contributing to this rise included compensation for employees, which increased by €201 million, or 6.7 per cent, to €3.20 billion. Social benefits also rose significantly, climbing by €299.7 million, or 7.1 per cent, to a total of €4.53 billion.
Intermediate consumption saw an increase of €72.5 million, or 6.6 per cent, reaching €1.18 billion. Interest payments remained largely stable at €358.7 million. In contrast, subsidies experienced a decrease of €10.7 million, down 8.3 per cent, to €118.5 million, while current transfers fell by €10.4 million, or 1.6 per cent, to €658.4 million.
Capital Investment Surge
The capital account displayed a substantial increase, rising by €307.8 million, or 36 per cent, to €1.16 billion. This includes €822.3 million in gross capital formation, which saw a 12.3 per cent rise, alongside €341.5 million in other capital expenditure, which more than doubled compared to 2024.
Cystat noted that estimates were used for several entities in the general government, particularly within the local government subsector, due to insufficient data submissions from the relevant authorities.
