The German Federal Council (Bundesrat) approved the 2025 federal budget on Friday, finalizing legislation that will take effect retroactively from January 2025, ending the previous provisional budget management. No requests were made to invoke the Conciliation Committee during the process, indicating broad consensus.
The approved budget allocates expenditures of approximately €502.5 billion, representing a roughly five percent increase compared to the 2024 fiscal year. This figure is, however, €460 million lower than initially proposed in the government’s draft budget. The net borrowing requirement, excluding special asset funds, is projected to reach nearly €82 billion. A total of around €63 billion is earmarked for investments within the budget law.
According to official sources, key investment priorities will focus on infrastructure, mobility, digitalization, innovation, education and research, climate protection and both domestic and foreign security. Substantial resources are dedicated to modernizing railway, road and bridge infrastructure.
