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Crisis spending · 2020–2023

COVID-19 emergency spending.

Tracking where the EUR 47B+ in pandemic relief actually went between 2020 and 2023 — Kurzarbeit, COFAG grants, healthcare surge, schools, and tax deferrals.

Total federal COVID spend
€29.6B
2020–2023, modeled aggregation
Peak year
2020
Highest disbursement year
Distinct measures
23
Programmes tracked individually

Spending over time

Pandemic outlays peaked in 2020–21 with Kurzarbeit and lockdown support, then tapered as schemes wound down.

By budget category

How emergency support maps onto our standard category taxonomy.

Measures

YearMeasureCategoryRecipientAmountConfidenceSource
2020
Kurzarbeit
Short-time work subsidies (AMS)
Labor & PensionsWorkers via employers€5.7BhighAMS-KUA-2023
2020
Umsatzersatz Lockdown
Revenue replacement during lockdowns
Economy & InnovationHospitality, retail€2.4BhighCOFAG-RPT-2023
2020
COFAG Fixkostenzuschuss I
Fixed-cost grant phase I
Economy & InnovationSMEs€2.1BhighCOFAG-RPT-2023
2020
Haerteausgleichsfonds
Hardship fund administered by WKO
Economy & InnovationSelf-employed, micro firms€1.3BhighBMF-COVID-2023
2020
Test- und Schutzausruestung
Tests, masks, PPE federal procurement
HealthFederal procurement€900.0MmediumBMF-COVID-2023
2020
Krankenanstalten-Zuschuss
Federal top-up to hospital operators
HealthBundeslaender hospitals€450.0MmediumBMF-COVID-2023
2020
Familienhaerteausgleich
Family hardship payments
Family & YouthFamilies€150.0MhighBMF-COVID-2023
2021
Kurzarbeit
Short-time work continued
Labor & PensionsWorkers via employers€5.3BhighAMS-KUA-2023
2021
COFAG Fixkostenzuschuss 800k
Fixed-cost grant up to EUR 800k
Economy & InnovationSMEs€1.9BhighCOFAG-RPT-2023
2021
Ausfallsbonus
Default bonus monthly payments
Economy & InnovationSMEs€1.4BhighCOFAG-RPT-2023
2021
Verlustersatz
Loss compensation scheme
Economy & InnovationAll firms€1.2BhighCOFAG-RPT-2023
2021
Impfprogramm
Vaccine purchase + rollout
HealthFederal vaccine procurement€1.1BhighBMF-COVID-2023
2021
Umsatzersatz II
Revenue replacement Q1 lockdown
Economy & InnovationClosed sectors€800.0MhighCOFAG-RPT-2023
2021
Massentests
Mass testing programme
HealthFederal/Laender€700.0MmediumBMF-COVID-2023
2021
Schul-Zuschuesse Corona
Schulstartgeld + air filters + tests
Education & ResearchSchools€250.0MmediumBMF-COVID-2023
2022
Energiekostenzuschuss I
Energy cost subsidy phase I (post-COVID transition)
Economy & InnovationEnergy-intensive firms€1.3BmediumBMF-COVID-2023
2022
Kurzarbeit Restabwicklung
Short-time work tail-end
Labor & PensionsWorkers via employers€1.1BhighAMS-KUA-2023
2022
COFAG Restzahlungen
Residual COFAG payouts
Economy & InnovationSMEs€600.0MhighCOFAG-RPT-2023
2022
Impf- und Testbetrieb
Continued vaccination + testing
HealthFederal€450.0MmediumBMF-COVID-2023
2022
Antiviral-Medikamente
Paxlovid and similar
HealthFederal procurement€180.0MhighBMF-COVID-2023
2023
COFAG Abwicklung
Wind-down disbursements
Economy & InnovationSMEs€150.0MhighCOFAG-RPT-2023
2023
Kurzarbeit Sondermodell
Special-case short-time work
Labor & PensionsWorkers via employers€120.0MmediumAMS-KUA-2023
2023
Impfstoff-Restbestaende
Vaccine stockpile + disposal
HealthFederal€90.0MmediumBMF-COVID-2023
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Regions
Geographic distribution of standard spending
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Pre vs post pandemic budget shifts

Sources