Indonesia: the 3% rule under strain
A State that taxes little and spends little, bound by a 3%-of-GDP deficit cap: Indonesia’s public revenue and spending since 2008, the Covid shock, energy subsidies, and a comparison with France.
Scope: Indonesian general government (central and local government), IMF government finance statistics, calendar years, 2008 to 2023 (latest year in this database); balance and debt to 2025 from the IMF World Economic Outlook (October 2026).
Key points
- In 2023, Indonesian general government spent Rp3,517tn (16.8% of GDP) against Rp3,175tn of revenue (15.2%): a deficit of Rp342tn, or 1.6% of GDP. Gross debt stands at 39.6% of GDP.
- A light State: compared with France, Indonesia spends 39.1 points of GDP less (16.8% against 55.9%) and raises 35.2 points less. There are almost no social contributions in these accounts, and social benefits weigh only 0.8% of GDP, against 25.2% in France.
- The 3% rule: the 2003 State Finance Law caps the deficit at 3% of GDP. It was suspended during Covid: the deficit rose to 6.7% of GDP in 2020 and 4.4% in 2021, then fell back under the cap as early as 2022 (2.2%). The IMF puts it at 2.9% in 2025, close to the limit.
- The weight of debt and energy: interest rose from 1.3% of GDP in 2014 to 2.1% in 2023, more than in France (1.8%). Subsidies, mostly on fuel and electricity, are back up to 2.3% of GDP in 2023 (1.3% in 2019), after the 2015 reform had cut them from 3.7% to 1.6%.
- The end of the resource windfall: oil, gas and mining royalties brought in 4.1% of GDP in 2008; they weigh only 1.6% in 2023. Corporate income tax is down too (5.0% → 4.1%). Revenue fell from 19.4% of GDP in 2008 to 15.2%, less than a third of the French level.
- These accounts end before the free-meals programme launched in 2025, which became a subject of protests and budget cuts in 2026. The IMF sees gross debt back up to 40.9% of GDP in 2025, far from the Asian crisis (87.4% in 2000) but above the 24.6% of 2014.
Revenue and spending, year by year
For each year: left bar = revenue (grey), right bar = spending (colours), stacked by type. The gap between the two bars is the deficit. Tap a legend item to isolate it. Amounts in trillions of rupiah. Spending is shown by nature; before 2014 it is not split.
See the card:Government revenue →Public spending →
What widened (or narrowed) the deficit
Change of each item in points of GDP between two years, spending by nature. Spending that rises, or revenue that falls, widens the deficit (bar to the left); revenue that rises narrows it.
Public balance: −2.1% of GDP in 2019, −1.6% in 2023, a change of +0.5 points. Contribution of spending: −0.4 pt; of revenue: +0.9 pt.
- Social benefits (pensions, allowances, reimbursed care)
- Public employee compensation
- Operating purchases
- Interest on debt
- Subsidies
- Investment
- Other transfers
- Revenue
Detail by item · 2019 → 2023
| Detail by item | Side | 2019 | 2023 | Change (pt) | Effect on balance (pt) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subsidies | Spending | 1.30 | 2.33 | +1.04 | −1.04 |
| Interest on debt | Spending | 1.74 | 2.10 | +0.36 | −0.36 |
| Operating purchases | Spending | 3.27 | 3.47 | +0.20 | −0.20 |
| Social benefits (pensions, allowances, reimbursed care) | Spending | 0.82 | 0.85 | +0.03 | −0.03 |
| Investment | Spending | 2.97 | 2.99 | +0.02 | −0.02 |
| Household income taxes | Revenue | 1.01 | 1.02 | +0.01 | +0.01 |
| Other taxes on goods and services (excises, customs and export duties…) | Revenue | 2.46 | 2.57 | +0.11 | +0.11 |
| Other transfers | Spending | 1.38 | 1.26 | −0.12 | +0.12 |
| Payroll, property and other taxes | Revenue | 0.38 | 0.54 | +0.16 | +0.16 |
| VAT (PPN) | Revenue | 3.36 | 3.54 | +0.18 | +0.18 |
| Corporate income tax | Revenue | 3.87 | 4.06 | +0.19 | +0.19 |
| Other revenue (oil, gas and mining royalties, dividends from State firms…) | Revenue | 3.20 | 3.47 | +0.28 | +0.28 |
| Public employee compensation | Spending | 4.91 | 3.83 | −1.08 | +1.08 |
| Total revenue | Revenue | 14.27 | 15.20 | +0.93 | +0.93 |
| Total spending | Spending | 16.39 | 16.84 | +0.44 | −0.44 |
| Balance | Balance | -2.12 | -1.64 | +0.48 | +0.48 |
The drivers
The balance against the 3% rule
General government balance, % of GDP. Negative = deficit. Dashed line: legal cap of −3%. Before 2008 and after 2023: IMF World Economic Outlook.
- Balance · −2.9% (2025)
See the card:Budget balance →
Gross and net debt
% of GDP, IMF (World Economic Outlook), actual years.
- Gross debt · 40.9% (2025)
- Net debt · 38.5% (2025)
See the card:Public debt →
Natural-resource revenue
Royalties and rents (oil, gas, mining) and dividends from State firms, % of GDP.
- Rents and royalties · 1.6% (2023)
- Dividends · 0.5% (2023)
Subsidies and interest
Subsidies (fuel, electricity, fertiliser…) and interest on the debt, % of GDP.
- Subsidies · 2.3% (2023)
- Interest on the debt · 2.1% (2023)
A still young population
Share of people aged 65 and over (%), World Bank.
- 65 and over · 7.0% (2023)
See the card:Share of people aged 65 and over →
Who runs the deficit?
Balance by level of government, % of GDP.
- Central government · −1.6% (2023)
- Local government · −0.0% (2023)
Indonesia and France
Same IMF government finance statistics for both countries, same scope (general government), % of GDP. Spending is compared by nature. To the right of a gap chart, Indonesia is above France.
Public spending, % of GDP
- Indonesia · 16.8% (2023)
- France · 55.9% (2023)
See the card:Public spending →
Public revenue, % of GDP
- Indonesia · 15.2% (2023)
- France · 50.4% (2023)
See the card:Government revenue →
Public balance, % of GDP
- Indonesia · −1.6% (2023)
- France · −5.5% (2023)
See the card:Budget balance →
Gross public debt, % of GDP
- Indonesia · 39.6% (2023)
- France · 106.4% (2023)
See the card:Public debt →
Revenue structure
One bar per country, stacked by type of revenue, % of GDP.
- Social contributions
- Household income taxes
- VAT
- Other taxes on goods and services
- Corporate income tax
- Payroll, property and other taxes
- Other revenue
Where Indonesia raises more (or less) than France
Indonesia minus France, points of GDP, same year. To the right, Indonesia is above.
- Indonesia − France · 2023
Spending by nature
What public money pays for: wages, social benefits, purchases, interest… The gap comes almost entirely from social benefits.
- Social benefits (pensions, allowances, reimbursed care)
- Public employee compensation
- Operating purchases
- Interest on debt
- Subsidies
- Investment
- Other transfers
Indonesia − France by type of spending, points of GDP
- Indonesia − France · 2023
Yearly data
Show the table of revenue, spending, balance and debt by year
| Year | Revenue | Spending | Balance | Balance (% of GDP) | Debt (% of GDP) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Rp3,175tn | Rp3,517tn | −Rp342tn | −1.6% | 39.6% |
| 2022 | Rp2,969tn | Rp3,403tn | −Rp433tn | −2.2% | 40.1% |
| 2021 | Rp2,477tn | Rp3,219tn | −Rp742tn | −4.4% | 41.1% |
| 2020 | Rp1,975tn | Rp3,004tn | −Rp1,028tn | −6.7% | 39.7% |
| 2019 | Rp2,259tn | Rp2,595tn | −Rp336tn | −2.1% | 30.6% |
| 2018 | Rp2,192tn | Rp2,433tn | −Rp241tn | −1.6% | 30.4% |
| 2017 | Rp1,945tn | Rp2,252tn | −Rp307tn | −2.3% | 29.4% |
| 2016 | Rp1,792tn | Rp2,100tn | −Rp308tn | −2.5% | 28.0% |
| 2015 | Rp1,742tn | Rp2,054tn | −Rp312tn | −2.7% | 27.0% |
| 2014 | Rp1,772tn | Rp1,956tn | −Rp184tn | −1.7% | 24.6% |
| 2013 | Rp1,609tn | Rp1,781tn | −Rp172tn | −1.8% | 24.9% |
| 2012 | Rp1,472tn | Rp1,587tn | −Rp115tn | −1.3% | 23.0% |
| 2011 | Rp1,322tn | Rp1,370tn | −Rp48.1tn | −0.6% | 23.1% |
| 2010 | Rp1,076tn | Rp1,105tn | −Rp28.4tn | −0.4% | 26.4% |
| 2009 | Rp916tn | Rp1,019tn | −Rp103tn | −1.7% | 26.5% |
| 2008 | Rp1,053tn | Rp1,047tn | Rp6.3tn | 0.1% | 30.3% |
Sources and method
- IMF, Government Finance Statistics (GFS). Revenue by type, spending by nature (from 2014), balance by level of government, rents and dividends: Indonesian general government, 2008–2023. France in the comparison is read from the same tables.IMF GFS (DBnomics)
- IMF, World Economic Outlook (October 2026). Balance before 2008 and in 2024–2025, gross and net debt, GDP deflator. Only actual years are kept: IMF estimates and projections are left out.IMF World Economic Outlook, October 2026
- World Bank. Share of people aged 65 and over.World Bank SP.POP.65UP.TO.ZS
- Method. Spending = expense + net investment in non-financial assets; balance = net lending or borrowing. Constant rupiah: current rupiah adjusted with the GDP deflator. The 3%-of-GDP cap applies to the consolidated deficit of central and local government (Law No. 17 of 2003); the IMF general government balance is close to it but not identical.
- Further reading. Ministry of Finance (State budget), statistics office (BPS), central bank.Kementerian Keuangan, APBNBadan Pusat StatistikBank Indonesia