Tax revenues amounted to €36.86 billion in the January-July period, up €2.19 billion, or 6.3%, against the 2024 budget target. The Ministry of Finance has noted that the additional tax receipts included in the 2024 budget total 1.543 billion euros.

In particular, according to the state budget execution data, on a modified cash basis, for the period January–July 2024, there is a deficit in the state budget balance of 139 million euros against a target for a deficit of 3,745 million euros included for the corresponding period of 2024 in the 2024 Budget Report and a deficit of 1,435 million euros in the corresponding period of 2023. The primary balance on a modified cash basis was a surplus of EUR 5,665 million, against a target for a primary surplus of EUR 1,655 million and a primary surplus of EUR 3,558 million for the same period in 2023.

It is important to note that the difference in tax revenues of EUR 647 million is included in the fiscal outturn in 2023. Additionally, the deferral of transfer payments to OCAs of EUR 1,693 million and spending on arms programs of EUR 630 million do not affect the fiscal outturn.

Excluding the above amounts, the overrun of the target for the primary surplus of the state budget for the January-July period amounts to EUR 1 040 million.

Therefore, the primary outcome in budgetary terms differs from the outcome in cash terms. It should be noted that the above refers to the primary outcome of the Central Administration and not to the general government as a whole, which includes the fiscal outcomes of the legal entities and the sub-sectors of the OTAs and OKA.

Moreover, the above refers to the comparison with the targets of the 2024 Budget Report. Earlier this year, when the April 2024 Stability Programme was being made, it was already planned that an extra EUR1.238 million would be spent in the regular budgets of general government entities and in the national arm of the Public Investment Programme. This is because tax revenues are expected to be higher in 2024.

In the period January - July 2024, the amount of net revenues of the State Budget amounted to EUR 39,187 million, representing an increase of EUR 863 million or 2.3% compared to the target included for the corresponding period in the 2024 Budget's explanatory report, since the target of the explanatory report included: a) the collection in March of EUR 1,797 million EUR 1,797 million from the Recovery and Resilience Fund (RRF), most of which, i.e. EUR 1,687 million, had been collected in December 2023 and an additional amount of EUR 159 million was collected in January 2024 and b) the collection in June of an amount of EUR 1. 350 million from the service concession contract for the financing, operation, maintenance and exploitation of the Egnatia Highway and the three (3) vertical roads, which was signed on 29.03.2024. The next steps of the process, up to the payment of the price, are expected to be completed in the coming months.

Total state budget revenues amounted to EUR 43,085 million, up EUR 867 million, or 2.1%, against the target.