Work & Income
The statutory minimum wage increases, as it does every year, in line with collective labor agreement wages. For workers aged 21 and over, the gross minimum wage will increase from 13.68 to 14.06 euros per hour. Non-working people also benefit: the AOW, social assistance benefit and the Wajong, among other things, are linked to the minimum wage and therefore increase accordingly. For example, from this year onwards, a single person will receive 1,580 euros gross monthly in state pension, 40 euros more than a year earlier.
From two to three discs
The income tax system is being overhauled. To accommodate working people, the lowest tax bracket is split into two. In this way, everyone pays slightly less tax on the first part of their income (up to 38,441 euros) than before, but slightly more on what they earn above that (up to 76,817 euros). The tax rate in the top bracket – for the highest incomes – remains the same.
False independence is curbed
Self-employed people in disguised employment will face a major change in the new year: the Tax Authorities will enforce bogus self-employment. This means that self-employed people can no longer be hired for work that, according to the law, should be carried out as an employee, as was tolerated for years.
The announced enforcement caused a lot of unrest, particularly in the healthcare, construction and media sectors. Regulations for such constructions have existed for nine years, but there have been no checks. This is now changing, although at the insistence of the House of Representatives no fines will be issued in 2025.
Concern
Health insurance is also becoming more expensive: premiums are increasing at all insurers. The average increase is 11 euros per month, according to the calculated comparison site Zorgwijzer. It is mainly the increased wages and prices in healthcare that are pushing up premiums, the cabinet said on Budget Day.
Some adjustments have been made to the basic package. For example, rehabilitation for the elderly is more often reimbursed and the state pays for exercise therapy for people with COPD. However, the basic package no longer covers medicines for the use of codeine against cough, pain or acute diarrhea.
Refund policy
Health insurers will no longer offer the reimbursement policy in 2025. In recent years, fewer and fewer insurers have offered the policy, but the last three are now also stopping. Insured persons can no longer opt for a policy where they also receive reimbursement for care from providers who are not affiliated with the insurer.
Living
Tenants will once again not be spared in the new year. The cabinet has determined that rents may rise sharply again. In the private sector, a maximum increase of 4.1 percent applies, for the average rent it is 7.7 percent. For social rent, the cabinet, municipalities and corporations decided that rents may increase by up to 5 percent.
Rents also rose sharply in the previous period. In 2024, it was the largest increase in thirty years, Statistics Netherlands calculated. In July this year, rents were on average 5.4 percent higher than a year earlier. How fast rents will actually rise in 2025 remains to be seen – ultimately it is up to the landlord himself.
Mortgage
Anyone who wants to buy a house can now take out a maximum mortgage of 450,000 euros with the National Mortgage Guarantee (NHG). That is 15,000 euros more than in the previous year. The one-off premium for taking out a mortgage with NHG drops from 0.6 percent to 0.4.
The emergency fund for people in energy poverty will be abolished. Energy suppliers no longer want to contribute because they believe a structural solution is needed. The government is looking for a way to ensure that the reserved 60 million euros benefit households that have difficulty paying their energy bills.
Childcare
Some working parents will spend less on childcare in the new year. The state makes a bigger contribution. The maximum hourly price that the government reimburses will also increase. The child budget and child benefit are adjusted for inflation and will therefore also increase slightly.
Mobility
The new NS timetable came into effect in December, but this will also be reflected in your wallet from January 1. The price of the train ticket will increase by 6 percent from the new year. Initially it would be 12 percent, but the state will cover part of the price increase.
Electric driving
It is becoming less economical to drive electrically. Owners of electric cars are no longer exempt from paying road tax. From now on, a quarter of the standard rate will be charged. From 2026 this will be 75 percent, and in five years the exemption will be completely gone.
It doesn’t stop there. The purchase subsidy for electric cars will also be scrapped. The 2,950 euros that you now get back when purchasing a new car will disappear next year. And the subsidy of 2,000 euros for second-hand electric cars will also disappear. Charging station electricity will also become more expensive in the new year.
Zero emission zones
The first fourteen municipalities in the Netherlands will introduce a zero-emission zone from the new year. The most polluting vans (lower than Euro 5) and trucks (lower than Euro class 6) are no longer allowed into the city center here. Commercial vehicles registered from January 1, 2025 must be completely emission-free.
Education
The ‘unlucky generation’, who studied without benefiting from the basic grant, will be compensated for this from 2025. Those who are entitled to compensation will receive 34.17 euros in their bill every month. The total amount depends on the number of years the person has studied under the loan system.
National Archives
Finally, one of the most charged changes: the Central Archives for Special Legal Procedure (CABR) is made public. You have to go to the National Archives in The Hague, but from January 1, the files of 425,000 Dutch people who may have collaborated with the Germans during the Second World War can be consulted by anyone with a concrete interest.
Initially, the archive would also be accessible online, but the minister has decided to refrain from this for the time being after a warning from the Dutch Data Protection Authority about privacy risks.