The State Treasury’s proposal for the final central government accounts for 2020 has been signed and submitted to the Ministry of Finance. The final central government accounts are drawn up based on the central government’s on-budget finances.
The State Treasury’s proposal for the final central government accounts includes the central government’s income and expense account, balance sheet, budget realisation statement, cash flow statement and the appendices to the statements.
“Experts from the government’s financial administration collaborate closely in the preparation of the final central government accounts and in the auditing process related to it; they assess, develop and also correct procedures if necessary. I would like to offer my heartfelt thanks to all those who participated in the preparation of the final accounts for their expert and efficient efforts on a tight schedule”, Director General of the State Treasury Timo Laitinen says.
According to the central government’s income and expense account, the deficit for 2020 was EUR 12.7 billion. In 2019, the deficit amounted to EUR 1.6 billion. Compared to the previous year, income was 7.3 per cent lower and expenses were 13.7 per cent higher. The decrease in income was mainly due to a decrease in financial and tax revenues.
The main reasons for the decline in taxes were the corona situation. In euro terms, the most significant decrease was the corporation tax, which shows that the corporations applied for changes in the prepaid taxes already determined. The companies could also apply for a reduced payment scheme, which was reflected in particular in the reduction of VAT revenue. In addition, the accrual of corporate tax by the state was reduced due to the increase in the distributed share of municipalities’ corporation tax as part of the corona subsidy package.
The share of payment transfer expenses in expenses was 80 per cent, totalling EUR 49.2 billion, which was approximately EUR 7.1 billion more than in the previous year.
The payment transfer expenses for local government and social security funds (both around EUR 15.0 billion) were the main items of the payment transfer expenses. Both of these also had the highest growth in euros compared to the previous year. The costs of the payment transfer for local government increased by approximately EUR 3.3 billion, most of which is due to the increase in central government transfers to local government. The payment transfer expenses for social security funds (an increase of approximately EUR 1.2 billion) was subject to changes in several instalments, the largest of which were those arising from unemployment benefits. The subsidies paid to companies due to the corona crisis also increased the payment transfer expenses.
The state balance sheet totalled EUR 63.2 billion, which was approximately 13% higher than in the previous year. The biggest changes in the balance sheet were changes in central government debt and cash equivalents. The impact of the corona crisis is evident in both of them due to the growth in central government expenditure and the safeguarding of central government liquidity.
The net increase in the shared central government debt of on-budget finances and the central government’s extra-budgetary funds was EUR 18.5 billion, with the total nominal value of the central government debt being EUR 124.8 billion and the market value being EUR 135.4 billion.
According to the state budget realisation statement, the surplus for the financial year 2020 was EUR 1.517 billion and the cumulative deficit at the end of the financial year was EUR 10.044 billion.
Budget realisation, income and expenses and balance (pdf) (in Finnish) >
More detailed breakdowns of the final central government accounts and accounting data are available via the reporting service maintained by the State Treasury at www.exploreadministration.fi. The page also includes links to other documents related to planning and monitoring.
The final central government accounts are attached to the government’s annual report, which is submitted to Parliament in April.
Further information:
Jaana Kuusisto, Government Controller, Ministry of Finance, tel. +358 (0)2955 30051, jaana.kuusisto(at)vm.fi
Sirpa Korkea-aho, Ministerial Adviser, Ministry of Finance, tel. +358 (0)2955 30252, sirpa.korkea-aho(at)vm.fi
Anu Marttila, Financial Administration Specialist, State Treasury, tel. +358 (0)2955 02136, kkp(at)valtiokonttori.fi
