KRG Rejects Draft Iraq Budget, Demands Constitutional 14.14% Share for 2027

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) on Wednesday rejected provisions in Iraq’s draft federal budget for 2027 that it says violate the Kurdistan Region’s constitutional and financial rights, demanding revisions before the bill proceeds to debate and a vote.

The position was announced during a meeting of the KRG Council of Ministers, chaired by Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, on Oct. 28, following a review of recent negotiations between the regional government and Iraq’s Federal Ministry of Finance over Article 10 of the draft budget law.

The council also discussed the outcome of a recent visit by a senior federal delegation to the Kurdistan Region, led by Iraq’s deputy prime minister for energy affairs and including the federal ministers of oil and electricity. The talks focused on outstanding oil and energy issues addressed in the draft budget.

Following the discussions, the KRG cabinet reaffirmed that the Kurdistan Region is a constitutionally recognized federal entity whose powers, rights, and financial entitlements are protected by Iraq’s Constitution.

It said the federal budget must be prepared on the basis of constitutional principles, fairness, and genuine partnership, rather than unilateral decisions or measures imposed by Baghdad.

The council insisted that the Kurdistan Region’s share of the federal budget should be calculated at 14.14 percent, based on its proportion of Iraq’s population according to the latest national census.

It also called for all of the region’s constitutional and financial entitlements to be guaranteed in the legislation.

The cabinet instructed the KRG’s negotiating delegation to identify and explain provisions and tables in the federal finance ministry’s draft that it considers unconstitutional or incorrect and that it says infringe on the region’s rights.

The delegation was tasked with submitting the KRG’s alternative proposals, together with supporting constitutional, legal, and financial documentation, to federal authorities and the political parties forming Iraq’s federal cabinet.

The KRG Council of Ministers also called on Iraq’s federal cabinet not to allow the draft budget to proceed to debate or a vote in its current form before a thorough review is completed and the region’s constitutional and financial entitlements are secured.

The regional government said it hoped the 2027 budget, under the federal cabinet led by Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, would provide an opportunity to reach a lasting, constitutionally grounded settlement to unresolved financial disputes between Erbil and Baghdad.

It warned that the budget should not reproduce the same disagreements that have persisted between the two governments in previous years.

The council reiterated that the KRG remained committed to fulfilling its constitutional and legal obligations but would not relinquish the rights and entitlements of the region or its citizens.

It also said the regional government had provided federal authorities with relevant information and data transparently, adding that joint monthly and quarterly audits and reviews continued through the constitutional institutions of both governments. On that basis, the council argued, budget decisions should not rely on what it described as unsupported claims or unsubstantiated information, nor impose unilateral conditions.

The meeting concluded with the cabinet reaffirming its support for the KRG negotiating delegation and its commitment to continued dialogue with Baghdad.

The regional government said it sought a fair agreement that protects the Kurdistan Region’s constitutional and financial rights and strengthens the principles of federal partnership.