Do large industrialized economies pursue sustainable debt policies? A comparative study for Japan, Germany and the United States

► We test whether public debt has been sustainable in Japan, Germany and the USA. ► We elaborate on the tests from a theoretical point of view. ► A semi-parametric estimation technique where we allow for a time varying reaction coefficient is applied. ► For the United States the high significance of the test results is encouraging despite the increasing debt ratio in the recent past. ► For Japan and Germany our analysis suggests that these two countries have performed sustainable debt policies since World War II, too, although the debt to GDP ratio has been rising.