The gap between the government's day-to-day spending (salaries, pensions, subsidies, interest) and its revenue receipts, as a share of GDP.
| Period | Value | Status | Base |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | 1.5 | Budget estimate | |
| 2025-26 | 1.5 | Revised estimate | |
| 2024-25 | 1.7 | Actual | |
| 2023-24 | 2.6 | Actual | |
| 2022-23 | 3.9 | Actual | |
| 2021-22 | 4.4 | Actual |
A revenue deficit means the government is borrowing to pay for current spending rather than for assets. The rest of the fiscal deficit, over and above the revenue deficit, is what pays for capital spending.
It counts grants to states for building assets as revenue spending, so the Budget also prints an effective revenue deficit that treats them as capital.