Figures from the Department of Finance show that the gap between Government spending and tax was almost €14.4bn in the first ten months of this year.
The figures show that the amount of tax taken in for the ten months was marginally ahead of targets set out by the Government earlier this year, though income tax is still falling short of expectations.
Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan has described the latest figures as encouraging.
€24.7bn of tax was received in the first ten months of the year, €243m, or 1%, above expectations, helped by a strong performance from corporation tax.
A breakdown showed that income tax of €8.6bn was almost €370m behind target, a drop that the department is blaming mainly on weak DIRT receipts in October.
VAT was marginally ahead of target at €8.45bn, but corporation tax was more than €470m ahead of expectations at €2.6bn. Excise duties were also slightly ahead of target at €3.7bn.
The Department of Finance says the figures mean the Government's targets for the whole of 2010 remain on track.
But it points out that November is a crucial month for the big tax categories, particularly for income tax from self-employed people.
Tax receipts are now down 5.4% compared with the first ten months of 2009.
The Government is expecting a 6% drop for the full year.
Total spending of €37.2bn is €1bn, or 2.7%, lower than the Government had expected and is down 4.2% from a year earlier. Current spending is almost in line with targets despite a big jump in social welfare payments, but capital spending is €1bn, or 22.5%, below Government targets.
Interest payments on our debt to the end of October were €3.2bn, more than €650m higher than in the same period last year.
