Emergency fund to help with high energy bills offered for longer time

An emergency fund to help low-income people cope with increased energy costs will remain open for five more days. This Temporary Emergency Energy Fund (Tijdelijk Noodfonds Energie) was actually scheduled to close next Monday, but due to high interest, people can still apply until Friday afternoon, May 5.

The Temporary Emergency Energy Fund offers households with incomes up to 200 percent of the social minimum a reduction in their energy bill, provided they meet a number of conditions. For example, a relatively large portion of their income must be spent on gas, electricity or district heating.

The fund received a considerable number of applications in the last week before its closure, so it was decided that the fund should stay open longer.Another factor is that the UWV benefits agency will be carrying out system maintenance this weekend. Among other things, the fund needs the data from the UWV to evaluate the applications.

The Temporary Emergency Fund for Energy is an initiative of major energy companies, such as Eneco, Essent, Vattenfall, Greenchoice, and Budget Thuis. They contribute 24,5 million euros and the national government supplements the fund set up in February with an equally high amount. So far, the emergency energy fund has received 130,000 applications. Of these, 42,000 have been approved and 54,000 are still pending.