Receipts of the Estonian state budget in 2012 totaled 6.4 billion euros or 3.4 percent more than set out in the budget law, while expenditures came to 6.47 billion euros, 96 percent of the budgeted amount.
Estonia's 2012 fiscal receipts surpass target 3.4 pct
24th February 2013, 10:22
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The general government budget position, which had been close to the balance point since summer, had a deficit of 0.35 percent of GDP at the end of November, suggesting a better-than-expected full year outcome, the Finance Ministry said on Thursday.
The budgeted income figure for 2012 was 6.2 billion euros and expenditures together with sums carried over from the preceding year totaled 6.8 billion euros. That money inflow surpassed the target was mainly a result of better intake of value-added-tax (VAT), corporate income tax and support, which are reducing the general government's fiscal deficit. Expenditures were lower than budgeted mainly as a result of smaller use of external support.
Budgetary income including advance payments totaled 6.4 billion euros. Tax income amounted to 4.76 billion euros and non-tax income to 1.65 billion euros, respectively 2.3 percent and 6.4 percent in excess of the target. Non-tax income includes above all payments from the EU budget, but also income from trading in carbon credits, dividends, state fees, environment fees and income from the sale of assets.
The biggest sources of income were social tax with 1.93 billion euros, 0.5 percent above target, VAT with 1.49 billion euros, 4 percent above target, and support with 1.22 billion euros, 5.4 percent above target.
Compared with 2011, receipts were bigger by 537.6 million euros or 9.1 percent, including tax receipts by 433.2 million euros and non-tax receipts by 118.9 million euros. Increased consumption boosted receipts of VAT by 150.4 million euros and positive development of the labor market made 131.3 million euros more flow into the budget as social tax. Despite decreased receipts of revenue from carbon credit deals, payments of support into the budget grew by 85.5 million euros year on year.
Expenditures worth 6.47 billion euros were financed, equaling 95.7 percent of the budgeted figure. A year earlier comparable expenditures totaled 6.16 billion euros and made up 99.5 percent of the budgeted amount. The biggest expenditure items were the main social subsidies at 2.65 billion euros, an increase of 6.9 percent over 2011 which can be attributed mainly to increases in pension expenditures.
Investments, at 1.07 billion euros, surpassed the 2011 figure by 13 percent mostly thanks to more intensive use of external support and proceeds from the sale of carbon credits.
The state's operating expenses totaled 1.11 billion euros, 0.2 percent more than budgeted. The year on year increase in operating expenses mainly resulted from a 7.3 percent rise in defense expenditures. Personnel expenses totaled 587.1 million euros and administrative expenses 523.8 million euros.
Payments of external support came to 893 million euros, 89 percent of the target set out in the budget. The sum was bigger by 111.2 million euros than the year before. Structural support made up 615.9 million euros of the payments, 94.5 million euros more than in 2011.
At the end of November the general government's budgetary position was in deficit by 58.6 million euros or 0.35 percent of GDP. The central government's deficit was 116.2 million euros, which was partially offset by a 85.4 million euro surplus of social insurance funds. For the full year the ministry expects a better budgetary position than the deficit of 2.1 percent of GDP set out in the budget law and the forecast of 1.2 percent of GDP offered in summer.