Latvia's general government debt is 11,700 euros per resident, well below Europe's highest levels
Latvia's general government debt stands at 11,700 euros per resident and 48% of GDP, so the country still meets the Maastricht criterion of keeping debt below 60% of GDP. Belgium's debt per resident is 60,100 euros, Bulgaria's 5,500 euros.
Latvia's general government debt amounts to 11,700 euros per resident, according to European comparison data compiled by the Fiscal Discipline Council (FDP). The debt equals 48% of gross domestic product (GDP), meaning Latvia still satisfies the Maastricht criterion, which requires debt to stay below 60% of GDP.
European comparison
The highest debt per resident in Europe is in Belgium, at 60,100 euros. The lowest is in Bulgaria, at 5,500 euros. Measured against GDP, Greece has the largest debt (140.8%) and Estonia the smallest (26.1%).
Latvia's debt rose by 0.9 percentage points compared with the second quarter of 2025.
Forecasts
The Ministry of Finance's indicative estimate suggests debt could reach 47.9% of GDP in 2026, 51.8% in 2027, 52.8% in 2028, 54% in 2029 and 54.1% in 2030. Interest payments are projected at 1.3% of GDP in 2026, 1.4% in 2027 and 2028, and 1.6% in 2029 and 2030.
Trends elsewhere
The FDP explains that among the 14 countries with debt below 60% of GDP, three reduced it. The largest falls were in Cyprus (9.6 percentage points) and Denmark (1.7). In the other 11 low-debt countries, debt rose by 1.9 percentage points on average.
Of the 13 high-debt countries, six cut their debt by 3.7 percentage points on average, most notably Greece (11.2) and Slovenia (4.5). In seven, debt grew by 3.3 points on average, including Poland (6.7), Belgium (3.8) and France (3.7).
The general government sector covers the whole of central and local government administration, as well as state social insurance bodies.
