EU budget 2017: €157.88 billion

SUMMARY OF:

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE EU BUDGET?

The EU budget funds the EU's long-term priority areas but also covers the normal running costs of the EU.
The EU’s annual budget finances the whole range of EU policies, activities, institutions and agencies. It represents about 1% of the gross national income of the 28 member countries.
For 2017, the EU budget also includes measures to tackle the huge surge in migration and support for investment to boost jobs and economic growth.

KEY POINTS

The 2017 EU budget provides for €157.88 billion in spending commitments* and €134.5 billion in payments*. The main areas of expenditure are:

	Commitments	Payments
Competitiveness for growth and jobs (research, innovation, education and SMEs)	€21.3bn	€19.3bn
Economic, social and territorial cohesion (regional, social and investment funds)	€53.6bn	€37.2bn
Sustainable growth, natural resources (agriculture, fisheries, rural and environment policies)	€58.6bn	€54.9bn
Direct financial support to farmers and market measures	€42.6bn	€42.6bn
Security and citizenship (border protection, asylum policy, anti-terrorism measures)	€4.3bn	€3.8bn
Global Europe (overseas development and humanitarian aid)	€10.2bn	€9.5bn
Administration (staff salaries and benefits, running costs)	€9.4bn	€9.4bn

FROM WHEN DOES THE EU BUDGET APPLY?

It applies from 1 January 2017.

BACKGROUND

The European Commission presents its draft proposal for the budget which must then be agreed by EU governments (the Council) and the European Parliament.
The Commission proposed a 2017 budget of €157.66 billion in commitments in June 2016. The Council slightly reduced that amount while the Parliament increased it. The 2 institutions used the conciliation procedure* to bridge the difference and agree the final terms of the budget in November 2016.
For more information, see:
- The budget explained (European Commission).

KEY TERMS

Commitments: legal pledges to provide finance, provided certain conditions are met.

Payments: cash or bank transfers to beneficiaries made during the budget year.

Conciliation procedure: negotiations between EU governments and the European Parliament to agree the final budget.

MAIN DOCUMENT

Definitive adoption (EU, Euratom) 2017/292 of the European Union’s general budget for the financial year 2017 (OJ L 51, 28.2.2017, pp. 1-2341)

last update 17.07.2017