Among EU member states, the highest social protection expenditure as a percentage of GDP last year was recorded in Austria (32.4%), Finland (32.2%) and France (32.1%), while the lowest was in Ireland (11.7%), Malta (13.8%), Hungary (16.7%) and Romania (17.06%), G4media.ro reported.
By expenditure category, old-age pensions accounted for almost half of total social protection expenditure in the EU (41.5%, or EUR 2,152 billion), followed by healthcare expenditure (30%, or EUR 1,556 billion).
Other categories include expenditure on families and children, sickness and survivors’ benefits, unemployment, and social exclusion not elsewhere classified.
In 2025, social protection expenditure expressed in euros increased in all EU member states. The largest increases compared with 2024 were recorded in Croatia (15.4%), Bulgaria (12.1%) and Lithuania (11.6%), while the smallest were in Greece (0.6%), Romania (0.7%) and Finland (1.3%).
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