Most Dutch will see purchasing power bump of between €1 and €50 under new Cabinet plans

Most Dutch households will benefit by between 1 and 50 euros per month due to the plans of the new government, the National Institute for Family Finance Information (Nibud) said. Most self-employed people and some pensioners will fee like their spending ability will decrease next year due to the plans, but most households will see a slight increase of purchasing powers of less than one percent.

"We see many small pluses and some minuses," said Nibud director Arjan Vliegenhart after calculations based on the Cabinet’s budget statement was presented on Tuesday. "Not much will change in the purchasing power of the households unless they have significant personal changes, of course. But this Cabinet is starting cautiously; we will only see part of the announced tax relief."

However, Nibud does see that the government is building on previously made changes and plans in allowances and social benefits. "You see that in a positive sense in the rent allowance for 2025. But many people will have already spent the few tens of euros they can spend before they realize it."

An average collective bargaining agreement salary increase of 4.3 percent is expected next year, but the cost of goods and services will likely also increase by about 3.2 percent. The basic health insurance premium will also rise by 10 euros per month, like last year.

As a result, households that receive a higher salary will not really have any extra cash leftover, Nibud expects. Changes on the taxation side also ensure that the increase in purchasing power will often be less than 1 percent. Workers who will not earn as much may not even see their purchasing power increase by that amount.

A new income tax bracket will be added, but the advantage of this will remain limited or even disadvantageous because, at the same time, the general tax credit will decrease. According to Nibud, working more hours will yield a higher net income for households at the minimum wage next year.

Nibud sees little change in benefits except in the rent allowance. In 2025, multi-person households under the AOW state retirement age can also get a portion of the rent above the cut-off limit reimbursed.

The healthcare allowance will increase by 6 to 7 euros for people with a low income. But if health insurance is 10 euros more expensive each month next year, then the healthcare allowance will not completely mitigate that increase.