ISTANBUL

The European Council announced Tuesday that it launched a budget discipline procedure against Austria over its "excessive" budget deficit.

This mechanism, known as the excessive deficit procedure (EDP), is designed to ensure that member states maintain or restore fiscal discipline in their government budgets, according to a statement by the European Council.

The statement said the disciplinary action was triggered by Austria’s budget deficit of 4.7% in 2024.

"The Council also approved a recommendation to Austria outlining the net expenditure path and timeline that should be followed to put an end to its excessive deficit by 2028," it said.

It said that the country should present the measures to be taken to effectively reduce the deficit by Oct. 15.

"Austria should ensure that its nominal growth rate of net expenditure does not exceed 2.6% in 2025, 2.2% in 2026, 2.2% in 2027 and 2.0% in 2028," it added.

Austria had a budget deficit of 4.7% last year. The EU Commission predicts that the deficit will be 4.4% of gross domestic product (GDP) this year and 4.2% next year.

EU fiscal rules limit the public deficits and debts of member states. Under normal conditions, member states' budget deficits should not exceed 3% of GDP, and public debt should not exceed 60% of GDP.

When those limits are exceeded, the EU Commission must be notified of measures to be taken, and an effective fight must be waged.