Housing corporations and private landlords will not be able to rent out property with a low energy label from 2030, housing minister Hugo de Jonge has confirmed.

The move to stop rentals of housing with an E, F or G label had been widely expected and will impact some 580,000 homes.

The aim is to boost the energy efficiency of Dutch housing ahead of the phasing out of gas, although an exception will be made for listed buildings which cannot be substantially altered.

De Jonge announced last month that from 2026, gas-fired central heating systems should be replaced by hybrid heat pumps where possible.

Sector lobby group Techniek Nederland estimates just two million of the eight million homes in the Netherlands are currently suitable for hybrid systems because the rest are not properly insulated.

De Jonge said that the abolition of a special tax currently paid by housing corporations will free up funding to pay for the improvements. The government is also setting up a €120 million subsidy fund for landlords with a few houses.

Home owners

The minister is also making it cheaper for home owners on low incomes to improve their property’s energy efficiency by scrapping the interest on loans from another government fund.

Home owners will also be able to request help if they only carry out one energy efficiency measure, such as installing double glazing, rather than two as the rules currently state.

The Netherlands has some 4.4 million owner-occupied properties, but some 10% do not have double glazing and 80% don’t have proper roof insulation.