Government finance & EDP statistics

Government finance statistics and the Excessive Deficit Procedure (EDP)


1. Reports

  • ECB - Government Finance Statistics Guide (link)

  • ECB Monthly Bulletin - Euro area statistics methodological notes, Section 6, Government finance (link)

  • Eurostat - Government financial statistics and EDP methodology (link)

  • Eurostat - Manual on Government Deficit and Debt - Implementation of ESA95 - 2013 edition (link)

2. CMFB opinions


11 August 2021

CMFB opinion on the supplementary table for the reporting of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) associated flows (link)


13 May 2019

CMFB opinion on the amendment of the Eurostat Manual on Government Deficit and Debt, 2019 edition (link)


25 September 2018

CMFB Opinion on the recording of Euro coins in national accounts (link)


13 July 2017

CMFB opinion on the statistical classification of the Hungarian Export-Import Bank (Eximbank) (link)


6 April 2017

CMFB opinion on the nature of the banking levies collected under the BRRD in 2015 and transferred to the SRB/SRF in 2016 (link)


23 January 2017

CMFB opinion on the statistical classification of the Hellenic deposit and Investment Guarantee Fund (link)


30 September 2016

CMFB opinion on the statistical classification of BANIF residual entity (link)


19 May 2014

CMFB opinion on the revised questionnaire relating to the EDP notification tables (link)


18 November 2013

CMFB opinion on unbalanced transfers of pension obligations to the government under ESA2010 (link)


18 March 2013

CMFB opinion regarding a clarification of the criteria used for the recording of capital injections (link)


22 January 2013

CMFB opinion on the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) (link)


18 December 2012

CMFB opinion on Recording of Low Interest Rate Loans (link)


19 October 2012

Protocol of cooperation between the CMFB and The European Committee of Central Balance Sheet Data Offices (ECCBSO) (link)


21 September 2012

CMFB opinion on a new section on the recording of "Emission trading permits" for the Manual on Government Deficit and Debt (link)


26 July 2012

CMFB opinion on the recording of some trade credits operations incurred by government units (link)


15 June 2012

CMFB opinion on revised EDP inventories (link)


12 March 2012

CMFB opinion on the amendment of chapter II.4 "Recording interest" of the Manual on Government Debt and Deficit (MDDD), 2010 Edition (link)


12 March 2012

  • CMFB opinion on the amendment of chapeter IV.5 "Financial defeasance" of the Manual on Government Deficit and Debt (MGDD) of October 2010 on the issue of partial rerouting. (Supplementing the CMFB opinion of 30 September 2011) (link)

  • CMFB opinion on amendment of the Manual on Government Debt and Deficit, 2010 Edition: New chapter IV.4.a on “Capital increases in multilateral development banks ”Amending chapters VI.4 “Public infrastructure financed and exploited by corporations”, VI.5 “Public-private partnerships (PPPs)”, VII.4 "Government guarantees" (link)

6 March 2012

CMFB opinion on the amendment of chapter II.4 "Recording interest" in the Manual on Government Debt and Deficit, 2010 Edition (link)


9 December 2011

CMFB opinion on a public corporations data questionnaire relating to the EDP notification tables (link)


30 September 2011

CMFB opinion regarding the amendment of chapter IV.5 "Financial defeasance" of the Manual on Government Deficit and Debt (MGDD) (link)


8 April 2011

Eurostat's preliminary view on the recording of the future European Stability Mechanism (link)


23 March 2011

CMFB opinion on the recording in national accounts of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) (link)


25 January 2011

CMFB opinion on the recording in national accounts of the "European Financial Stability Facility" (EFSF) (link)


7 September 2010

CMFB opinion concerning the draft Third Edition of the Manual on Government Debt and Deficit (link)


6 August 2009

CMFB opinion concerning the revised EDP notification tables and questionnaire (link)


18 March 2009

  • CMFB opinion concerning statistical accounting consequences for government of the financial turmoil (opinion)

  • CMFB opinion concerning statistical accounting consequences for government of the financial turmoil: UK's "Special Liquidity Scheme" (link)


5 April 2007

CMFB opinion concerning securitisation operations undertaken by Government (link)


1 March 2006

CMFB opinion on the format of EDP pre-notification questionnaires (link)


30 January 2006

CMFB opinion concerning the treatment of military equipment expenditure in national accounts (link)


29 July 2005

CMFB opinion on the recording of the International Finance Facility for Immunisation (IFFIM) in national accounts (link)


20 May 2005

  • CMFB opinion on the securitisation operations of SCIP 1 and SCIP 2 in Italy (link)

  • CMFB opinion on the role of ISPA in the financing of the high speed railway link in Italy (RFI – TAV) (link)

17 January 2005

CMFB opinion concerning the treatment in national accounts of transfers from the EU budget to the Member States (link)


30 January 2004

CMFB opinion on the treatment in national accounts of assets related to "public-private partnerships" contracts (link)


20 October 2003

CMFB opinion on the treatment in national accounts of payments to government by public corporations in the context of the transfer to government of their unfunded pensions obligations (link)


11 August 2003

  • CMFB opinion on the treatment in national accounts of the transfer of assets from the EFTA Fund to the Portugese Government (link)

  • CMFB opinion on the treatment in national accounts of capital injections by government units in public corporations (link)


12 March 2003

CMFB opinion on Part V of the ESA95 Manual on government deficit and debt on securitisation operations undertaken by government units (link)


23 December 2002

CMFB opinion on the treatment of the case of the "Bond conversion under Law No 483/93 in Italy" (link)


2 July 2002

CMFB opinion on treatment of securitisation operations undertaken by general government (link)


15 June 2000

CMFB opinion on mobile phone licences: treatment in the national accounts (link)


3. Legislation

  • Council Regulation (EU) No 679/2010 of 26 July 2010 amending Regulation (EC) No 479/2009 as regards the quality of statistical data in the context of the excessive deficit procedure (link) (link to consolidated version)

  • Council Regulation (EC) No 479/2009 of 25 May 2009 on the application of the Protocol on the excessive deficit procedure annexed to the Treaty establishing the European Community (link)


  • Guideline of the ECB of 31 July 2009 on government finance statistics (recast) (ECB/2009/20) (link)


  • Unofficial consolidated text of the Guideline of the ECB on the statistical reporting requirements of the ECB and the procedures for exchanging statistical information within the European System of Central Banks in the field of government finance statistics (link)

  • Guideline of the ECB of 5 September 2008 amending Guideline ECB/2005/5 of 17 February 2005 on the statistical reporting requirements of the ECB and the procedures for exchanging statistical information within the European System of Central Banks in the field of government finance statistics (ECB/2008/7) (link)

  • Guideline of the ECB of 15 November 2007 (ECB/2007/14) amending Guideline ECB/2005/5 on the statistical reporting requirements of the ECB and the procedures for exchanging statistical information within the ESCB, in the field of government finance statistics (link)

  • Guideline of the ECB of 18 December 2006 (ECB/2006/27) amending Guideline ECB/2005/5 on the statistical reporting requirements of the ECB and the procedures for exchanging statistical information within the ESCB, in the field of government finance statistics (link)

  • Guideline of the ECB of 3 February 2006 (ECB/2006/2) amending Guideline ECB/2005/5 on the statistical reporting requirements of the ECB and the procedures for exchanging statistical information within the ESCB, in the field of government finance statistics (link)

  • No longer in force: Guideline of the ECB of 17 February 2005 (ECB/2005/5) on the statistical reporting requirements of the ECB and the procedures for exchanging statistical information within the ESCB, in the field of government finance statistics (link)


  • Council Regulation (EC) No. 1222/2004 of 28 June 2004 concerning the compilation and transmission of data on the quarterly government debt (link)

  • Council Regulation (EC) No. 501/2004 of 10 June 2004 on quarterly financial accounts for general government (link)

  • Council Regulation (EC) No. 1221/2002 of 10 June 2002 on quarterly non-financial accounts for general government (link)



4. Procedures and mandates


27 September 2013

Procedures for the consultation of the CMFB about the statistics underlying the Excessive Deficit Procedure (link)


18 October 2005

Administrative arrangements (link)


18 February 2003

ECOFIN Code of best practice on the compilation and reporting of data in the context of the excessive deficit procedure Code of best practice (link)


5. Background

Article 8 of Council Regulation (EC) No 2103/2005 (link) regarding the quality of EDP statistical data made statutory provisions for the CMFB's role in relation to

  • EDP matters and questionnaires related to EDP notifications;

  • inventories of deficit and debt data;

  • clarifications of ESA 95 accounting rules;

  • complex or general interest cases.

Eurostat shall take a decision following the consultation of the CMFB.