The national debt of Ireland was estimated at approximately 236.50 billion U.S. dollars in 2024. Between 1990 and 2024, the national debt rose by around 199.63 billion U.S. dollars, though the increase followed an uneven trajectory rather than a consistent upward trend. The national debt is expected to drop by about 31.77 billion U.S. dollars between 2024 and 2030, showing a continuous downward movement throughout the period.

Ireland recorded a Government Debt to GDP of 40.90 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2024. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - Ireland Government Debt to GDP - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

Key information about Ireland Government Debt: % of GDP

• Ireland Government debt accounted for 33.3 % of the country's Nominal GDP in Jun 2025, compared with the ratio of 34.5 % in the previous quarter.
• Ireland government debt to GDP ratio data is updated quarterly, available from Mar 2000 to Jun 2025.
• The data reached an all-time high of 123.4 % in Mar 2013 and a record low of 24.6 % in Jun 2007.

• In the latest reports, Ireland National Government Debt reached 243.9 USD bn in Jun 2025.
• The country's Nominal GDP reached 185.8 USD bn in Jun 2025.

In 2024, the ratio of national debt to gross domestic product (GDP) of Ireland was 38.77 percent. Between 1995 and 2024, the figure dropped by 39.75 percentage points, though the decline followed an uneven course rather than a steady trajectory. The forecast shows the ratio will steadily decline by 10.54 percentage points from 2024 to 2030.The general government 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. Here it is depicted in relation to the country's GDP, which refers to the total value of goods and services produced during a year.

Key information about Ireland National Government Debt

• Ireland National Government Debt reached 243.9 USD bn in Jun 2025, compared with 222.6 USD bn in the previous quarter.
• Ireland National Government Debt data is updated quarterly, available from Mar 2000 to Jun 2025.
• The data reached an all-time high of 296.6 USD bn in Dec 2013 and a record low of 32.3 USD bn in Jun 2001.

• In the latest reports, Ireland Consolidated Fiscal Balance registered a surplus equal to 3.7 % of its Nominal GDP in Jun 2025.
• The country's Government debt accounted for 33.3 % of its Nominal GDP in Jun 2025.
• Ireland Nominal GDP reached 185.8 USD bn in Jun 2025.

Government Debt in Ireland increased to 207243 EUR Million in the second quarter of 2025 from 206218 EUR Million in the first quarter of 2025. This dataset provides - Ireland Government Debt- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Graph and download economic data for General government gross debt for Ireland (GGGDTAIRL188N) from 1995 to 2023 about Ireland, debt, gross, and government.

Ireland: Government debt as percent of GDP: The latest value from 2023 is 43.7 percent, a decline from 44.4 percent in 2022. In comparison, the world average is 61.85 percent, based on data from 137 countries. Historically, the average for Ireland from 1995 to 2023 is 59.46 percent. The minimum value, 23.6 percent, was reached in 2006 while the maximum of 120.1 percent was recorded in 2013.

Actual value and historical data chart for Ireland Central Government Debt Total Percent Of GDP

Ireland IE: Central Government Debt: Total: % of GDP data was reported at 83.634 % in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 88.791 % for 2015. Ireland IE: Central Government Debt: Total: % of GDP data is updated yearly, averaging 49.226 % from Dec 1998 (Median) to 2016, with 19 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 131.114 % in 2013 and a record low of 26.973 % in 2007. Ireland IE: Central Government Debt: Total: % of GDP data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Ireland – Table IE.World Bank.WDI: Government Revenue, Expenditure and Finance. 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.; ; International Monetary Fund, Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, and World Bank and OECD GDP estimates.; Weighted average;

The table relates to Gross National Debt (GND) only, providing a breakdown of the outstanding debt amounts into euro-denominated and non-euro denominated debt items as well as a residual maturity breakdown of debt. GND is the debt incurred by the Exchequer before the deduction of cash and other financial assets. It is the principal component of General Government Debt (GGD), which also includes the debt of other central and local government bodies, and is compiled and published by the Central Statistical Office (CSO). Gross National Debt data are published by the Central Bank of Ireland on a quarterly basis based on data from the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA).

Ireland IE: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: Central Government: Debt Securities, Loans, SDRs, Currency and Deposits data was reported at 69.520 % in Mar 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 68.760 % for Dec 2017. Ireland IE: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: Central Government: Debt Securities, Loans, SDRs, Currency and Deposits data is updated quarterly, averaging 40.734 % from Dec 1995 (Median) to Mar 2018, with 90 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 124.292 % in Mar 2013 and a record low of 0.000 % in Sep 1999. Ireland IE: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: Central Government: Debt Securities, Loans, SDRs, Currency and Deposits data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Ireland – Table IE.World Bank: QPSD: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: Central Government.

Ireland IE: Gross Public Debt: USD: Budgetary Central Government: Debt Securities data was reported at 172.678 USD bn in Mar 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 158.542 USD bn for Dec 2017. Ireland IE: Gross Public Debt: USD: Budgetary Central Government: Debt Securities data is updated quarterly, averaging 83.261 USD bn from Dec 1995 (Median) to Mar 2018, with 78 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 172.678 USD bn in Mar 2018 and a record low of 22.807 USD bn in Jun 2001. Ireland IE: Gross Public Debt: USD: Budgetary Central Government: Debt Securities data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Ireland – Table IE.World Bank: QPSD: Gross Public Debt: Budgetary Central Government.

Monthly and long-term Ireland Public Debt data: historical series and analyst forecasts curated by FocusEconomics.

In September 2024, the national debt of the United States had risen up to 35.46 trillion U.S. dollars. The national debt per capita had risen to 85,552 U.S. dollars in 2021. As represented by the statistic above, the public debt of the United States has been continuously rising. U.S. public debt Public debt, also known as national and governmental debt, is the debt owed by a nations’ central government. In the case of the U.S., national debt is owed by the federal government to Treasury security holders. Generally speaking, government debt increases with government spending, and can be decreased through taxes. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. government increased spending significantly to finance virus infrastructure, aid, and various forms of economic relief. International public debt Venezuela leads the global ranking of the 20 countries with the highest public debt in 2021. In relation to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Venezuela's public debt amounted to around 306.95 percent of GDP. Eritrea was ranked fifth, with an estimated debt of 170 percent of the Gross Domestic Product. The national debt of the United Kingdom is forecasted to grow from 87 percent in 2022 to 70 percent in 2027, in relation to the Gross Domestic Product. These figures include England, Wales, Scotland as well as Northern Ireland. Greece had the highest national debt among EU countries as of the 4th quarter of 2020 in relation to the Gross Domestic Product. Germany ranked 13th in the EU, with its national debt amounting to 69 percent of GDP in the same time period. Tuvalu was one of the 20 countries with the lowest national debt in 2021 in relation to the GDP, while Macao had an estimated level of national debt of zero percent, the lowest of any country. The data refer to the debts of the entire state, including the central government, the provinces, municipalities, local authorities and social insurance.

Ireland IE: Gross Public Debt: General Government: Debt Securities data was reported at 138,840.370 EUR mn in Mar 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 130,680.745 EUR mn for Dec 2017. Ireland IE: Gross Public Debt: General Government: Debt Securities data is updated quarterly, averaging 55,245.270 EUR mn from Dec 1995 (Median) to Mar 2018, with 78 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 138,840.370 EUR mn in Mar 2018 and a record low of 26,892.550 EUR mn in Jun 2001. Ireland IE: Gross Public Debt: General Government: Debt Securities data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Ireland – Table IE.World Bank: QPSD: Gross Public Debt: General Government.

Graph and download economic data for Outstanding Domestic Public Debt Securities to GDP for Ireland (DDDM04IEA156NWDB) from 1996 to 2011 about Ireland, public, debt, domestic, securities, and GDP.

The long-term interest rate on government debt is a key indicator of the economic health of a country. The rate reflects financial market actors' perceptions of the creditworthiness of the government and the health of the domestic economy, with a strong and robust economic outlook allowing governments to borrow for essential investments in their economies, thereby boosting long-term growth.

The Euro and converging interest rates in the early 2000s

In the case of many Eurozone countries, the early 2000s were a time where this virtuous cycle of economic growth reduced the interest rates they paid on government debt to less than 5 percent, a dramatic change from the pre-Euro era of the 1990s. With the outbreak of the Global Financial Crisis and the subsequent deep recession, however, the economies of Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Ireland were seen to be much weaker than previously assumed by lenders. Interest rates on their debt gradually began to rise during the crisis, before rapidly increasing beginning in 2010, as first Greece and then Ireland and Portugal lost the faith of financial markets.

The Eurozone crisis

This market adjustment was initially triggered due to revelations by the Greek government that the country's budget deficit was much larger than had been previously expected, with investors seeing the country as an unreliable debtor. The crisis, which became known as the Eurozone crisis, spread to Ireland and then Portugal, as lenders cut-off lending to highly indebted Eurozone members with weak fundamentals. During this period there was also intense speculation that due to unsustainable debt loads, some countries would have to leave the Euro currency area, further increasing the interest on their debt. Interest rates on their debt began to come back down after ECB Chief Mario Draghi signaled to markets that the central bank would intervene to keep the states within the currency area in his famous "whatever it takes" speech in Summer 2012.

The return of higher interest rates in the post-COVID era

Since this period of extremely high interest rates on government debt for these member states, the interest they are charged for borrowing has shrunk considerably, as the financial markets were flooded with "cheap money" due to the policy measures of central banks in the aftermath of the financial crisis, such as near-zero policy rates and quantitative easing. As interest rates have risen to combat inflation since 2022, so have the interest rates on government debt in the Eurozone also risen, however, these rises are modest compared to during the Eurozone crisis.

During the Great Recession of 2008-2009, the advanced economies of the G7 experienced a period of acute financial crises, downturns in the non-financial economy, and political instability. The governments of these countries in many cases stepped in to backstop their financial sectors and to try to stimulate their economies. The scale of these interventions was large by historical standards, with observers making comparisons to the measures of the New Deal which the U.S. undertook in the 1930s to end the Great Depression.

The bailouts of financial institutions and stimulus packages caused the government debt ratios of the United States, United Kingdom, and Japan in particular to rise sharply. The UK's government debt ratio almost doubled due to the bailouts of Northern Rock and Royal Bank of Scotland. On the other hand, the increases in government debt in the Eurozone were more measured, due to the comparative absence of stimulus spending in these countries. They would later be hit hard during the Eurozone crisis of the 2010s, when bank lending to the periphery of the Eurozone (Portugal, Spain, Ireland and Greece in particular) would trigger a sovereign debt crisis. The Canadian government, led by a Conservative premier, engaged in some fiscal stimulus to support its economy, but these packages were small in comparison to that in most other of the G7 countries.

Graph and download economic data for Outstanding Total International Debt Securities to GDP for Ireland (DDDM07IEA156NWDB) from 1980 to 2020 about Ireland, issues, debt, and GDP.