30-04-2025
Iraq may scrap 2025 budget amid plunging oil prices
Shafaq News/ The Iraqi government is considering canceling the 2025 federal budget due to plunging oil prices that have deepened the country's fiscal deficit, a source in the Council of Ministers said on Wednesday.
The source told Shafaq News that the cabinet has not formally discussed the budget tables in recent sessions, but Finance Minister Taif Sami has informed the government of a 'significant deficit' in the proposed 2025 budget.
"Given the current conditions, there may be no budget this year," the source said, citing declining oil revenues as the main reason behind the projected shortfall.
The official added that if the budget is scrapped, the finance minister may issue a decision to proceed with pending salary increases and promotions for public sector employees, which have been delayed due to budget constraints.
In February, Iraq's parliament passed the first amendment to the federal general budget law for the fiscal years 2023–2025, originally enacted as Law No. 13 of 2023.
However, delays in submitting financial tables to parliament have slowed the budget approval process. The Iraqi Finance Ministry has yet to send the necessary documents to the cabinet, despite a legal requirement to do so by October 2024.
The total budget is estimated at 216 trillion dinars ($165 billion), with actual expenditures projected at 160 trillion dinars ($122 billion).
