According to the Fiscal Discipline Council (FDC), at the end of September 2025, the total public debt per capita in Latvia was 10,200 euros.
According to the level of debt per capita, Belgium has the highest figure in Europe at 57,200 euros, while Bulgaria and Estonia have the lowest at 4,900 and 6,900 euros respectively, reports the Fiscal Discipline Council (FDC).
Latvia still ranks among the countries with a relatively low level of public debt at 45.2% of gross domestic product (GDP) and meets the Maastricht criterion, according to which debt should not exceed 60% of GDP, noted the FDC.
Forecasts suggest that by 2025, the debt will amount to 49% of GDP, but in the following years, it will rise more sharply, reaching 51% of GDP in 2026 and 55% of GDP in 2027 and 2028.
The FDC notes that the ratio of debt servicing costs to GDP will also continue to grow. Interest payments are projected to be 484 million euros or 1.2% of GDP in 2025 and 584 million euros or 1.3% of GDP in 2026. In 2027, they are projected to be 1.4% of GDP, or 643 million euros, and in 2028, 1.5% of GDP, or 722 million euros.
Among European countries, Greece had the highest debt-to-GDP ratio at 149.7%, while Estonia had the lowest at 22.9%.
The FDC reported that in seven out of 15 countries with debt below 60% of GDP, so-called low-debt countries, the level of debt decreased in percentage points compared to the third quarter of 2024. The largest reduction occurred in Ireland - by 7.2 percentage points and in Denmark - by three percentage points. On average, the debt of these seven countries decreased by 2.3 percentage points in the third quarter.
In the remaining eight low-debt countries, debt increased on average by 2.9 percentage points in the third quarter.
In high-debt countries (a total of 13), the debt volume in percentage terms decreased in four of them by an average of 4.2 percentage points. The largest decrease occurred in Greece - by 8.9 percentage points and in Cyprus - by 6.1 percentage points. However, nine high-debt countries increased their debt on average by 2.4 percentage points, including Finland - by 4.6 percentage points, France - by four percentage points, Belgium - by 2.3 percentage points, Slovakia and Italy - by 2.2 percentage points.
