France recorded a Government Debt to GDP of 110.60 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2023. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - France Government Debt to GDP - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

The ratio of national debt to gross domestic product (GDP) in France was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 11.8 percentage points. After the sixth consecutive increasing year, the ratio is estimated to reach 124.1 percent and therefore a new peak in 2029. Depicted here is the general government's gross debt in relation to the country's GDP. According to the International Monetary Fund, gross debt consists of all liabilities that require payment or payments of interest and/or principal by the debtor to the creditor at a date or dates in the future. The GDP, on the other hand, refers to the total value of final goods and services produced during a year.Find more key insights for the ratio of national debt to gross domestic product (GDP) in countries like the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg.

Key information about France Government Debt: % of GDP

• France Government debt accounted for 110.6 % of the country's Nominal GDP in Dec 2023, compared with the ratio of 111.7 % in the previous quarter.
• France government debt to GDP ratio data is updated quarterly, available from Dec 1995 to Dec 2023.
• The data reached an all-time high of 117.5 % in Mar 2021 and a record low of 56.1 % in Dec 1995.

Related information about France Government Debt: % of GDP

• In the latest reports, France National Government Debt reached 3,409.6 USD bn in Mar 2024.
• The country's Nominal GDP reached 736.3 USD bn in Mar 2023.

In 2024, public debt in France represented 112.3 percent of the country’s GDP. According to the source, public debt in France is supposed to remain stable in the upcoming years. There was a substantial increase between 2019 and 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the French government's economic response to it. Since 2005, public debt in France is increasing making the country one of the most in debt of the European Union.

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.

This graphic depicts the public debt of France from 2004 to 2022 as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Since 2008, the French public debt continuously rose and reached its highest in 2020 with 146 percent of the GDP. However, since this peak of 2020, the public debt started decreasing and was equal to 117.3 percent of the GDP in 2022.

Key information about France Household Debt: % of GDP

• France household debt accounted for 74.2 % of the country's Nominal GDP in Dec 2023, compared with the ratio of 77.8 % in the previous year.
• France household debt to GDP ratio is updated yearly, available from Dec 1977 to Dec 2023.
• The data reached an all-time high of 81.0 % in Dec 2020 and a record low of 19.6 % in Dec 1977.

CEIC calculates annual Household Debt as % of Nominal GDP from quarterly Household Debt and annual Nominal GDP. The Banque de France provides Household Debt in EUR. National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies provides Nominal GDP in EUR. Household Debt includes Sole Proprietorship.


Related information about France Household Debt: % of GDP

• In the latest reports, France Household Debt reached 2,335.5 USD bn in Sep 2024.
• Money Supply M2 in France increased 0.8 % YoY in Nov 2024.
• France Foreign Exchange Reserves was measured at 29.5 USD bn in Dec 2024.
• The Foreign Exchange Reserves equaled 0.5 Months of Import in Nov 2024.
• France Domestic Credit reached 5,416.5 USD bn in Oct 2024, representing an increased of 1.4 % YoY.
• The country's Non Performing Loans Ratio stood at 2.4 % in Dec 2021, compared with the ratio of 2.7 % in the previous year.

Key information about France External Debt: % of GDP

• France External Debt accounted for 244.9 % of the country's Nominal GDP in 2023, compared with the ratio of 243.0 % in the previous year.
• France External Debt: % of Nominal GDP data is updated yearly, available from Dec 2004 to Dec 2023.
• The data reached an all-time high of 264.9 % in Dec 2020 and a record low of 123.0 % in Dec 2004.

CEIC calculates External Debt as % of Nominal GDP from quarterly External Debt and annual Nominal GDP. The Banque de France provides External Debt in EUR based on BPM6. National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies provides Nominal GDP in EUR. External Debt prior to 2008 is based on BPM5, sourced from the Banque de France.


Related information about France External Debt: % of GDP

• In the latest reports of France, Current Account recorded a deficit of 3.4 USD bn in May 2024.
• Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) fell by 111.3 USD mn in May 2024.
• France Direct Investment Abroad expanded by 2.2 USD bn in May 2024.
• Its Foreign Portfolio Investment increased by 132.8 USD bn in Mar 2024.
• The country's External Debt reached 7,806,404.8 in Mar 2024.
• The country's Nominal GDP was reported at 736.3 USD bn in Mar 2023.

Private Debt to GDP in France decreased to 268.20 percent in 2023 from 278.80 percent in 2022. France Private Debt to GDP - values, historical data, forecasts and news - updated on March of 2025.

France debt to gdp ratio for 2022 was 98.66%, a 18.23% decline from 2021.

• France debt to gdp ratio for 2021 was 116.89%, a 6.29% decline from 2020.
• France debt to gdp ratio for 2020 was 123.17%, a 18.21% increase from 2019.
• France debt to gdp ratio for 2019 was 104.96%, a 3.34% increase from 2018.

Debt is the entire stock of direct government fixed-term contractual obligations to others outstanding on a particular date. It includes domestic and foreign liabilities such as currency and money deposits, securities other than shares, and loans. It is the gross amount of government liabilities reduced by the amount of equity and financial derivatives held by the government. Because debt is a stock rather than a flow, it is measured as of a given date, usually the last day of the fiscal year.

Graph and download economic data for Outstanding Domestic Private Debt Securities to GDP for France (DDDM03FRA156NWDB) from 1996 to 2011 about France, debt, securities, domestic, private, and GDP.

The statistic shows the national debt of France from 2019 to 2022, with projections up until 2029. In 2022, the national debt of France amounted to around 3.19 trillion U.S. dollars. For comparison, the Greek debt amounted to approximately 392.27 billion euros that same year. French national debt and developments in taxationFrance currently has one of the highest national debt levels of any of the world’s nations. Debt in the European Union’s second-largest economy is currently at around 97 percent of GDP. The cost of interest on the country’s debt alone comes in at over 1,600 euros per second; every man, woman, and child in France, of which there are 65.3 million in total, takes a share of just under 28 thousand euros of the debt.On 6th May 2012, the incumbent French President was defeated by François Hollande, leader of the French Socialist Party. The new President vowed to develop and change the tax system of France, announcing wide-ranging economic policies in a bid to balance the nation’s budget and right what he considered to be social wrongs. He pledged and supported the separation of lending and investment banks, as well as proposing sweeping changes to the French tax system. The introduction of the measure of capping tax loopholes at a maximum of ten thousand euros per year and questioning the solidarity tax on wealth, the annual direct wealth tax on those with assets above 1.3 million, were also part of Hollande’s proposals. The President has also signaled his intention to implement an income tax rate of 75 percent on revenue earned above one million euros per year. He stated the allocation of the revenue from this tax would be used to develop the deprived suburbs and to balance the nation's budget by 2017. France is a country brimming with big business and millionaires. The nation is home to the most millionaires in Europe; 2.6 million in total.

France FR: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: General Government: Debt Securities and Loans data was reported at 96.018 % in Mar 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 95.169 % for Dec 2017. France FR: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: General Government: Debt Securities and Loans data is updated quarterly, averaging 72.222 % from Mar 2000 (Median) to Mar 2018, with 73 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 97.638 % in Jun 2017 and a record low of 55.794 % in Mar 2001. France FR: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: General Government: Debt Securities and Loans data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s France – Table FR.World Bank: QPSD: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: General Government.

In the third quarter of 2024, Greece's national debt was the highest in all the European Union, amounting to 158 percent of Greece's gross domestic product. In spite of Greece's total being high by EU standards, it marks a substantial decrease from the historical high point reached by the country's national debt of 207 percent of GDP in 2020. Italy, France, Spain, Belgium, and Portugal also all have government debt worth over one year's production of their economies, while the small Baltic country of Estonia has the smallest national debt when compared with GDP, at only 24 percent. In debitum incrementum?A country’s national debt, also known as government debt or public debt, is defined as all borrowings owed by the government of a country. It usually comprises internal debt – owed to other governmental departments – and external debt, which is held by the public and is owed to government bond owners. National debt can be caused by a struggling economy in general, or by low tax income, which usually leads to money being borrowed from other governments for support, which in turn cannot be paid back right away. At first glance, a high national debt is not always a sign of a struggling economy – but since increasing debt can slow down economic growth significantly, it is imperative for the respective government to seek a steady reduction in the long run.

Graph and download economic data for Outstanding International Private Debt Securities to GDP for France (DDDM05FRA156NWDB) from 1980 to 2020 about France, debt, securities, private, and GDP.

France FR: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: General Government: Long Term: Over 1 Year data was reported at 87.645 % in Mar 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 87.415 % for Dec 2017. France FR: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: General Government: Long Term: Over 1 Year data is updated quarterly, averaging 61.674 % from Mar 2000 (Median) to Mar 2018, with 73 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 88.515 % in Jun 2017 and a record low of 52.260 % in Mar 2001. France FR: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: General Government: Long Term: Over 1 Year data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s France – Table FR.World Bank: QPSD: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: General Government.

This statistic shows the percentage change on the previous year for general government consolidated gross debt as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) in France from 2014 to 2020. In 2020, the variation was much greater than in previous years, with a variation of almost 12 percent, resulting from the COVID-19 crisis and the budgetary, economic and financial efforts made by the State to support citizens, institutions and private companies.

This dataset provides values for GOVERNMENT DEBT TO GDP reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

This statistic shows the gross domestic product (GDP) in France from 1987 to 2023, with a projection up until 2029. GDP refers to the total market value of all goods and services that are produced within a country per year. It is an important indicator of the economic strength of a country. In 2023, the GDP in France was around 3.03 trillion U.S. dollars.

Economy of France

France is an economically developed nation and one of the members of the G7. France is also considered to be one of the leading countries in Europe, often seen as the second most important nation in the European Union behind Germany. France has a relatively high gross domestic product (GDP), being one of the top 10 countries with the largest GDP in the world in 2014. Despite this, the country is still ranked in the top 20 in regards to its public debt compared to its GDP in the same year. A high debt-to-GDP ratio demonstrates a country’s ability to produce and sell goods and services in order to be able to pay back its debts, however producing and selling these goods should not result in more debts. France’s national debt slightly increased year-over-year up until 2014, most notably between 2008 and 2009.

Additionally, France reported a large trade deficit in 2012, a value almost 5 times larger compared to the previous year, indicating that the country is importing much more than it is exporting. This often leads to higher debts due to a need to borrow more money to produce goods.

France FR: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: Central Government: Foreign Currency data was reported at 0.000 % in Mar 2018. This stayed constant from the previous number of 0.000 % for Dec 2017. France FR: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: Central Government: Foreign Currency data is updated quarterly, averaging 0.399 % from Mar 2010 (Median) to Mar 2018, with 33 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1.959 % in Jun 2010 and a record low of 0.000 % in Mar 2018. France FR: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: Central Government: Foreign Currency data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s France – Table FR.World Bank: QPSD: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: Central Government.

France FR: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: Central Government data was reported at 90.017 % in Mar 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 88.934 % for Dec 2017. France FR: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: Central Government data is updated quarterly, averaging 65.979 % from Mar 2000 (Median) to Mar 2018, with 73 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 90.836 % in Jun 2017 and a record low of 54.669 % in Mar 2001. France FR: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: Central Government data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s France – Table FR.World Bank: QPSD: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: Central Government.