OECD Budget

The OECD is funded by its Member countries. National contributions are based on a formula which takes account of the size of each Member’s economy.  Those contributions are received in the form of Assessed Contributions, within the framework of a four-year Programme of Work.

Countries may also make Voluntary Contributions to financially support outputs in the OECD Programme of Work.

The OECD’s planning, budgeting and management are organised on a results-based system, with its Programme of Work determined on a four-year basis by Member countries.

The OECD is governed by its Council, composed of representatives from all the Member countries. Through the Budget, the OECD Council accords the necessary commitment authorisation and makes the necessary appropriations for the functioning of the Organisation and the delivery of its agreed output results in the four-year Programme of Work. 

The approved Budget determines the amount of Assessed Contributions to be paid by Members. All OECD Member countries fund what is called the ”Part I” Budget. There are also additional areas of work called “Part II Programmes”, which are funded separately from the Part I Budget. These Part II Programmes relate to topics that are of interest to a limited number of Members and are therefore funded only by those participating Members. Some Part II Programmes also include non-Member participants who contribute to their funding and work. The other main OECD Budget items are pensions and publications.

The approval of the Budget by Council empowers the Secretary-General to:

1. commit and authorise expenditures and to make all payments to be borne by the Organisation, for the purposes assigned and within the limits of the appropriations or the commitment authority;
2. receive the income entered in the Budget, together with any other resources accruing to the Organisation in respect of its Programme of Work.

The OECD does not dispense grants or make loans.

All Member countries contribute funding to the Part I Budget through Assessed Contributions (see table below), calculated using a formula that combines a component shared equally among all Member countries and a component based on the relative size of their economies.

In addition to Assessed Contributions, the Part I Budget is also financed by other sources of income. The Part I Budget for 2026 is EUR 238 million.

Part II Budgets are funded according to scales of contributions or other agreements among the participating countries. The consolidated Part II Budgets for 2026 amount to EUR 129.7 million. The combined Part I and Part II Budgets come to EUR 367.7 million.

The Organisation prepares annual Financial Statements in accordance with International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS). The latest Financial Statements can be found below.

Independent external auditing of the Organisation’s accounts and financial management is performed by a Supreme Audit Institution of an OECD Member Country, appointed by the Council. It certifies the financial statements and reviews the Budget results. The Council, in the light of this certification and comments, discharges the Secretary-General from all liability in respect of his or her administration.

The OECD is entitled to diplomatic privileges and immunities, as are officials and Member country representatives. The OECD is exempt from paying taxes related to its operating income and expenses.

In addition to audits of the OECD’s accounts and financial management, the appointed Supreme Audit Institution also carries out performance audits. Results of these audits can be found below.