The German Federal Council (Bundesrat) approved the 2025 federal budget on Friday, a decision that brings an end to provisional budgetary management. The related legislation takes effect retroactively to January 1, 2025. No requests were made to invoke the Conciliation Committee during the process.
The approved budget allocates expenditures of approximately €502.5 billion, representing a rise of over five percent compared to 2024. However, this figure is €460 million lower than initially proposed in the government’s preliminary draft. The projected net borrowing is set at nearly €82 billion, excluding special funds. Investment allocations within the budget law total around €63 billion.
According to official sources, key investment areas will focus on infrastructure, mobility, digitalization, innovation, education and research, climate protection and both domestic and international security. Substantial resources have been earmarked for the modernization of rail, road and bridge infrastructure.