Gross debt, Percent of own revenue (Central government) in Canada
Canada: Gross debt, Percent of own revenue (Central government) was 3.56 in 2020. ▼ Falling
Gross debt, Percent of own revenue in Canada, 1995–2020
Source: International Monetary Fund.
Analysis
Canada recorded 3.56 for gross debt, percent of own revenue in 2020. That is the highest value across all 26 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 57.1% on the previous year and up 27.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, gross debt, percent of own revenue in Canada peaked at 3.56 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 1.69, in 2007.
Canada ranks 8th of 23 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.
Gross debt, Percent of own revenue (Central government) in Canada, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 3.46 | — |
| 1996 | 3.4 | -1.8% |
| 1997 | 3.08 | -9.5% |
| 1998 | 2.98 | -3.2% |
| 1999 | 2.7 | -9.2% |
| 2000 | 2.37 | -12.5% |
| 2001 | 2.41 | +1.6% |
| 2002 | 2.47 | +2.6% |
| 2003 | 2.36 | -4.2% |
| 2004 | 2.18 | -7.7% |
| 2005 | 2.07 | -5.0% |
| 2006 | 1.92 | -7.2% |
| 2007 | 1.69 | -11.9% |
| 2008 | 2.1 | +23.9% |
| 2009 | 2.63 | +25.4% |
| 2010 | 2.79 | +6.0% |
| 2011 | 2.87 | +2.7% |
| 2012 | 2.95 | +2.9% |
| 2013 | 2.7 | -8.6% |
| 2014 | 2.59 | -3.9% |
| 2015 | 2.59 | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 2.61 | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 2.44 | -6.3% |
| 2018 | 2.28 | -6.7% |
| 2019 | 2.27 | -0.5% |
| 2020 | 3.56 | +57.1% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 3.56 is above the median for high income countries, which is 2.86, 1.2× the median. (21 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Gross debt, Percent of own revenue (Central government) in Canada changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | +57.1% | 2.27 | 3.56 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3.13 | 2.7 | 3.46 | 5 |
| 2000s | 2.22 | 1.69 | 2.63 | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.61 | 2.27 | 2.95 | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.56 | 3.56 | 3.56 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Canada
More external debt data for Canada
- Other investment, Debt instruments 1.30 trillion US dollar (2025)
- Other investment, Debt instruments (Assets, Positions, US dollar) 8.44 % change on previous year (2025)
- Other investment, Debt instruments, Deposit taking corporations 988.42 billion US dollar (2025)
- Other investment, Debt instruments (Assets, Positions, US dollar) 31,206 US dollar per person (2025)
- Other investment, Debt instruments (Assets, Positions, US dollar) 0.5603 US dollar per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Liabilities, International Liquidity, Liabilities to Nonresidents 0 (2008)
- Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-), General government, Percent of -1.46 (2030)
- Other investment, Debt instruments, Deposit taking corporations 7.87 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary net lending (+) / net borrowing (-), General government -0.879 (2030)
- Other investment, Debt instruments, Deposit taking corporations 23,731 US dollar per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is gross debt, percent of own revenue in Canada?
- Gross debt, percent of own revenue in Canada was 3.56 in 2020, according to International Monetary Fund.
- What is the highest gross debt, percent of own revenue recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 3.56 in 2020.
- What is the lowest gross debt, percent of own revenue recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.69 in 2007.
- How does Canada rank for gross debt, percent of own revenue?
- Canada ranks 8th out of 23 countries with data for 2020.
- Is gross debt, percent of own revenue rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is up 27.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from International Monetary Fund, published as part of Gross debt, Percent of own revenue (Central government). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
The Fiscal Decentralization dataset includes fiscal decentralization indicators for a sample of IMF member countries. The following indicators are included in the dataset: Revenue and Expenditure Decentralization Shares; Transfer dependency and Vertical Fiscal Imbalances; Deficit and Debt; Allocation of expenditure (economic classification); Allocation of expenditure (functional classification); Allocation of non-Tax Revenues; and Allocation of Taxes.