Algeria costs French taxpayers 9.16 billion euros a year
European Parliament member Sarah Knafo made a fierce public statement yesterday Thursday 06 February 2025, by claiming that Algeria costs French taxpayers €9.16 billion annually, 3 times what the French Outre-Mer department costs to France. A figure she calls “the price of weakness” in bilateral relations. Presented at a Paris symposium titled “Europe-Maghreb: Enough Naivety, Time for Order,” the breakdown outlines expenses linked to development aid, unpaid public bills, and immigration-related costs.
The €9 Billion Breakdown: From Development Aid to Delinquency
Knafo’s analysis, drawn from French government agencies, international institutions, and public records, itemizes costs attributed to Algeria as follows:
€136 million: Annual public development aid to Algeria.
€100 million: Unpaid bills by Algerian nationals in French public hospitals.
€880 million: Fraudulent pension claims tied to Algeria.
€2 billion: Lost tax revenue (VAT and income tax) due to financial transfers to Algeria.
€1.6 billion: Social welfare for Algerian nationals in France.
€1.5 billion: Social housing for Algerian immigrants.
€380 million: Costs for Algerian students in French universities.
€260 million: Expenses linked to undocumented Algerian migrants.
€2.2 billion: Criminal justice, incarceration, and delinquency costs involving Algerian offenders.
Total: €9.16 billion per year, a sum Knafo equates to “three times France’s overseas territories budget” and exceeding the Agriculture Ministry’s entire funding.
These new figures come weeks after Knafo’s initial statement, in which she estimated France’s annual development aid to Algeria at approximately €136 million. Her claims faced immediate backlash from Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who dismissed her figures as “baseless” and accused her of ‘profound ignorance.’ Algerian authorities argue that France’s annual development aid averages between €20 million and €30 million.
At the symposium, Knafo emphasized France’s ‘unacceptable’ financial burden: “€9 billion is the price of our leaders” weakness toward a hostile regime. This must stop.’ She linked these costs to systemic loopholes, including tax losses from remittances to Algeria and fraud in pension systems.
Welfare, Housing, and Security
The largest expenses center on social welfare (€1.6 billion) and housing (€1.5 billion) for Algerian nationals in France. Critics argue these reflect broader immigration policy challenges, not unique ties to Algeria. Conversely, Knafo’s supporters insist the figures highlight Algeria’s failure to manage its diaspora. Criminal justice costs (€2.2 billion) also draw scrutiny. While French delinquency statistics rarely isolate nationalities, Knafo’s team cites prison administration data showing Algerians represent the largest foreign inmate group.
Knafo is rallying increasing support for her call for accountability, galvanizing fiscal hawks who demand audits of bilateral agreements. Proposals include slashing development aid, enforcing stricter oversight of social benefits, and renegotiating tax treaties to curb revenue losses.
It will be difficult for Algeria’s military regime to counter with facts and figures; its likely response will be mockery, denial, and anti-colonial rhetoric. We will see if the regime in Algiers publishes countervailing financial data.
By Abderrahmane Fares
