ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A high-level delegation from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) arrived in Baghdad on Sunday to resume talks with Iraqi federal officials over the Region's financial entitlements in the draft 2027 federal budget.
The KRG's Department of Media and Information said in a statement that the delegation is scheduled to meet with relevant federal government parties to “present its comments on the draft bill's provisions and seek to secure the constitutional rights” of the people of Kurdistan and the financial entitlements of public-sector employees.
The visit comes ahead of an Iraqi cabinet meeting scheduled for Tuesday, which Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has designated specifically to discuss the 2027 federal budget bill before it is approved and submitted to parliament, government spokesperson Haider al-Aboudi said Saturday.
The draft budget allocates the Kurdistan Region 12.7 percent of federal funds, subject to several conditions, including the handover of oil and non-oil revenues to Baghdad.
It also includes a mechanism to settle accumulated financial obligations between Erbil and Baghdad, estimated at 12.7 trillion Iraqi dinars ($8.4 billion), from 2004 to 2026 over three years, as well as addressing the Region's debts to the Trade Bank of Iraq (TBI).
A major point of contention is the amount of oil the Kurdistan Region must hand over to Baghdad. The federal government is seeking at least 400,000 barrels per day starting in 2027, while Erbil has proposed between 250,000 and 280,000 barrels.
Meanwhile, the KRG is seeking to increase its share of the federal budget to 14.14 percent based on the results of Iraq's 2024 population census, compared with the 12.7 percent allocated in the current draft.
The two governments reached an agreement in 2025 to market Kurdistan Region's oil through State Oil Marketing Company of Iraq (SOMO), but disputes over production volumes, oil company payments and revenue sharing continue to derail a lasting agreement between the two governments.
