Greece plans to repay the first bailout package of loans a decade ahead of the original 2041 schedule, Minister of National Economy and Finance Kyriakos Pierrakakis said on Wednesday.
The government claims that Greece is emerging as a leader in public debt reduction. While countries like Italy and France are projected to see their debt levels rise, Greece is charting a path toward fiscal sustainability, with plans to lower its debt-to-GDP ratio to 140 percent by 2027 and further to 120 percent by 2030.
Greece to repay €31.6 billion of bailout loans by 2031
A key milestone in this effort is the proposed early repayment of €31.6 billion from the first bailout package—a decade ahead of the original 2041 schedule.
“This isn’t just a scenario—it’s becoming a reality. We repaid the IMF three years ago. Now, we aim to repay the loans from the first memorandum ten years early. Beyond the signal this sends to the markets, it’s about lightening the national burden. The quicker we reduce debt, the sooner our primary surpluses can be directed back into society,” Pierrakakis told public broadcaster ERT.
If this plan is executed, Greece will soon shed its status as the Eurozone’s most indebted country. According to the International Monetary Fund’s latest Fiscal Monitor, Greece—alongside Cyprus and Portugal—is projected to reduce its public debt by over 15 percentage points in the next five years.
The IMF estimates Greece’s debt-to-GDP ratio will fall to 125.1 percent by 2030. Meanwhile, Italy is expected to take over as the most indebted Eurozone member by 2026, with France not far behind.
Related: Debt Reduction in Greece Comes at a Cost for its Citizens
Already, Greece has repaid the installments due through 2028 and is preparing another early repayment this year, totaling €5.2 billion—this time covering installments scheduled for after 2030. The process will follow the precedent set in previous years: a formal request submitted in the coming months, to complete the procedure by late autumn or by the end of 2025.
These early repayments also yield direct economic benefits. Greece earns interest from paying down bilateral loans ahead of schedule. If the current pace of two repayments per year continues, the country could complete full repayment by 2030.
Greece: A debt reduction champion in 2024
In 2024, Greece recorded the strongest debt reduction performance among all 27 EU member states. According to Eurostat, the country’s public debt-to-GDP ratio fell by 10.3 percentage points compared to 2023. From its peak of 197.3 percent in 2021, Greece’s ratio dropped to 153.6 percent in 2024—a cumulative decline of 43.7 points in just three years.
While the average EU public debt increased slightly from 80.8 percent to 81 percent of GDP in 2024, Greece stood out alongside Cyprus (down 8.6 points) and Croatia (down 4.3 points). In contrast, countries like France and Poland experienced increases of 3.2 and 5.7 points, respectively.
According to the Hellenic Statistical Authority, Greece’s total public debt in absolute terms remains stable: €364.8 billion in 2024, nearly unchanged from the pandemic peak of €364.1 billion in 2021. This stability, combined with high growth rates and strict fiscal discipline, has enabled Greece to steadily improve its debt ratio and restore confidence in its economic trajectory.
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