The government’s debt to private individuals rose again last March, climbing to 3.103 billion euros, up from €3.034 billion in February and €2.577 billion at the end of 2025.
Last December, the government’s overdue debts to private individuals had plummeted by half a billion euros, after many months of a steep upward trend, but the decline did not last long, with all that this implies for the liquidity of businesses that supply the state.
According to data from the Ministry of National Economy and Finance (YPETHO), hospitals remain the “champions” of debt, with liabilities of 1.590 billion euros, down from 1.696 billion euros a month earlier, while compared to December 2025, they continue to show a significant increase (193 million euros). However, the €106 million month-over-month decrease is not unrelated to the acceleration of offsets (clawbacks, etc.).
The debts of the Social Security Organizations, however, rose last March to €668 million, from €606 million in February 2026, while remaining at the same levels as in December 2025 (when they also stood at €666 million).
It should be noted that this amount also includes overdue debts of EOPYY that are still pending, amounting to €199 million.
The debts of local government bodies (municipalities and regions) amounted to €412 million, a decrease of €34 million compared to February. However, the increase in debt is massive compared to December 2025, when it had fallen to 180 million euros.
At the same time, other public-sector entities reduced their debts to 165 million euros, down from 200 million euros. At the end of December 2025, these debts stood at 208 million euros.
Tax Refunds
Outstanding tax refunds decreased by just €16 million in one month, amounting to €750 million in March of this year, down from €766 million a month earlier. At the end of 2025, they stood at €722 million.
Of the total amount:
- €329 million relates to refunds that are more than 90 days overdue. Of this amount, €160 million has not been refunded to beneficiaries due to a lack of supporting documents or an inability to contact the taxpayers.
- Pending tax refunds of less than 90 days (non-overdue refunds) from the date of issuance of the Individual Tax Refund Statement (AFEK) amounted to 427 million euros at the end of March.
It is worth noting that the aforementioned figures do not include pending refunds from Customs, specifically for excise tax and VAT in industries, hotels, fishing vessels, and ships, as well as any refunds made by Customs involving individuals or self-employed professionals.
However, so far, there have been no substantial results in reducing government debt, despite the work of a special committee tasked with identifying the actual causes of the delays.
The committee, which began its work last year, is attempting for the first time to compile a comprehensive and documented picture regarding:
- Which entities have overdue obligations, i.e., debts for a period longer than 90 days.
- The amount of their debts.
- The reasons why payments are delayed, even though the required funds are available and have already been recorded in the public debt.
Entities found to be non-compliant are subject to increased oversight, and their relevant data will be published on a regular basis.