- AIReF will produce the standard budgetary cycle supervision reports, including monitoring of the 2025–2028 Medium-Term Fiscal-Structural Plan
- It will publish its first opinion on the soundness, coherence and effectiveness of the national fiscal framework following the European reform, its second opinion on fiscal risks and its fifth and final opinion on the minimum income scheme (IMV)
- It will prepare the assessment of the pension expenditure rule, the action plan for the third phase of the 2022–2026 Spending Review and various regional studies
- It will strengthen the medium- and long-term sustainability analysis, incorporating structural risks such as the impact of climate change
- AIReF will develop a new Strategic Plan in 2026 setting out the institution’s priorities for the coming years
The Independent Authority for Fiscal Responsibility (AIReF) today published its 2026 Action Plan, which sets out the institution’s main lines of work for the year, against a backdrop shaped by the implementation of the new European fiscal framework and the appointment of a new President.
The 2026 Action Plan was approved following the appointment of Inés Olóndriz as President of AIReF for a six-year term, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Organic Law 6/2013. In this context, the Plan maintains the direction set out in the 2020–2026 Strategic Plan, which has guided the institution’s work in recent years, while also having a transitional character, since a new Strategic Plan will be drawn up during the year to establish AIReF’s priorities for the next period.
The 2026 Action Plan sets out the reports, opinions and studies that the institution will produce over the course of the year, as well as other initiatives aimed at strengthening fiscal oversight, the sustainability of public finances and the assessment of public policies. AIReF thus makes a public commitment to transparency and accountability in relation to its activity.
Reports and opinions
In the area of fiscal oversight, AIReF will continue to issue reports on the budget cycle, including analysis of the main lines of the General Government budgets, initial budgets, budget execution, public debt and the expenditure rule. It will also monitor the 2025–2028 Medium-Term Structural-Fiscal Plan and assess the macroeconomic forecasts of the different administrations.
For the first time, the institution will publish an opinion on the soundness, coherence and effectiveness of the national budgetary framework under the European rules following the 2024 reform, which assigned this function to independent fiscal institutions. In addition, it will publish its second opinion on fiscal risks and its fifth and final opinion on the minimum income scheme. These actions reinforce its role in the early identification of risks and in analysing the consistency of the fiscal framework.
Pension assessments and a new phase of the Spending Review
In the field of public expenditure assessment, AIReF will continue to consolidate this function as one of the pillars of its activity. In 2026, key work will include the preparation and publication of the assessment study on the pension expenditure rule, as well as the development of the action plan and the preparatory work for the study on the effectiveness and efficiency of incentives to promote employment schemes. The institution will also make progress in defining and preparing the work corresponding to the third phase of the 2022–2026 Spending Review.
At regional level, AIReF will continue to carry out assessments commissioned by the Autonomous Regions, with a particular focus on healthcare. Studies on healthcare equipment and infrastructure and on healthcare human resources in the Autonomous Region of Navarre are scheduled for publication in 2026, together with an assessment of health workforce resources in the Balearic Islands. The work on public procurement and health information systems in the Balearic Islands will also be finalised and delivered.
In addition, AIReF will undertake new assessment work in other Autonomous Regions, including analyses of healthcare public procurement in Extremadura and the Region of Murcia, and will begin assessments in the latter on pharmaceutical benefits, advanced healthcare technology and human resources. The assessment of the guaranteed minimum income in Catalonia is also expected to begin once the action plan submitted by AIReF has been approved, together with the preparation of the action plan for the assessment assignment on the university system in the Canary Islands.
Strengthening long-term analysis
At the same time, AIReF will continue to strengthen its analysis of the medium- and long-term sustainability of public finances by developing macroeconomic, demographic and fiscal models, updating debt scenarios and studying structural risks, including those arising from climate change.
The 2026 Action Plan is transitional, as a new Strategic Plan will be drawn up during the year to define the institution’s priorities for the coming years. Its implementation will be subject to continuous monitoring and semi-annual assessment by the Steering Committee, with accountability provided through the Annual Report.
