Romania ranked last in the EU for the share of social protection expenditure in its GDP, with 14.6%. By comparison, the spending on social protection represented 29% of the GDP in the European Union in 2015, according to data from EU’s statistical office Eurostat.

The share of social protection expenditure in GDP in Romania dropped from 17.3% of the GDP in 2010 to 14.6% in 2015. At EU level, the trend was reverse. The share grew from 28.6% in 2010 to 29% in 2015.

Age and survivors’ pensions accounted for 45% of the total social benefits in the EU in 2015. Unemployment benefits ranged between less than 0.7% of the total social protection expenditure in Romania to 12% in Ireland.