ECA: 3.8% of EU budget was spent incorrectly in 2025
Annual audit flags €45.4bn of recovery errors, higher error rates in cohesion and agriculture, and a warning that EU debt could hit €1 trillion by 2027.
The European Court of Auditors (ECA) found that 3.8% of the European Union budget was spent incorrectly in 2025, according to its annual report published on the day the auditors presented their findings.
The audit estimated that errors in recovery spending linked to post‑pandemic plans reached €45.4 billion. By the end of 2025, €237.5 billion had been paid out of the €359.9 billion envisaged for those plans, and only three of the 27 member states had used at least 80% of their allocated funds. Of 37 payments examined in 2025, nine showed breaches of public procurement rules or irregularities connected with state aid.
Wider budgetary errors and rising risks
Inspectors said error rates across the regular EU budget remain "significant and widespread", with the highest levels in cohesion policy (increasing from 5.7% in 2024 to 6.6% in 2025) and in agriculture and the environment (rising from 2.6% to 3.9%).
The auditors also warned that the EU's total debt could reach €1 trillion by 2027, placing additional pressure on future budgets and political choices. Interest costs in the period 2028–2034 could amount to €93 billion, and proposals for the next long‑term budget would allow new borrowing to support Ukraine and respond to crises. The loan facility for Ukraine approved in 2014 has total commitments of €170.1 billion, of which €70.3 billion had been disbursed by the end of 2025.
The ECA stressed that the estimated error rate does not equal the level of fraud or inefficiency but reflects the share of funds not used entirely in line with EU rules. During their checks the auditors identified 17 suspected cases of fraud that were passed to the competent authorities.
In its response, the European Commission said the 3.8% rate is comparable with the previous year (3.6%) and substantially lower than in 2023 (5.6%) and 2022 (4.2%). The Commission added that most irregularities are not linked to fraud and that, through checks by the Commission and member states, preventive and corrective measures worth €9 billion were applied in 2025.
Photo: press material from the event
