The total expenditure on social protection benefits in the EU reached €4,307 billion in 2022, a 3% increase compared to 2021, according to Eurostat figures. The largest increases were recorded in Bulgaria, Cyprus, and Hungary, while the smallest were in Austria and France, Denmark, Slovakia, Finland, and Germany.
In 2022, social protection benefits expenditure represented 27.2% of the EU’s GDP, a 1.5 percentage point drop compared to 2021. For Latvia, the figure fell from 18% in 2021 to an estimated 17.2% in 2022, continuing a downward trend from 2020’s figure of 19%. Social protection benefits expenditure as a percentage of GDP decreased in all EU countries except for Cyprus, Bulgaria, and Luxembourg. The highest expenditures were in France (32% of GDP), Austria, and Italy (30%), while the lowest were in Ireland (11%), Malta (15%), Estonia, Lithuania, and Hungary (16%).
Old age and sickness/healthcare benefits accounted for the main part of social protection benefits in all EU countries for which data are published.
CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE NEWS
Protection Benefits Decrease As Share of GDP
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