A plan to increase taxes on savers and investors starting in 2026 recently seemed like a done deal. The proposal would have primarily affected private investors, people with savings, and self-employed individuals building their own pension pot. In an unexpected political turn, that proposal has been scrapped. However, this doesn’t solve the budget problem, so the bill is now being passed to a completely different group of Dutch citizens.
Tax Increase Scrapped #
The demissionary cabinet wanted to use the revenue from the proposed tax increase to plug a new hole in the budget. This gap arose because the renewed box-3 system has once again been delayed. However, the plan faced significant opposition from the House of Representatives.
The House considered the plan too crude and unfair, especially since the current delay in Box 3 is already costing billions. The cabinet had counted on about €2.5 billion in revenue that will now only arrive later, further widening the gap for 2026. Therefore, parties spent the last few weeks searching for alternatives. At one point, it seemed no solution could be found, until the ChristenUnie and SGP parties came forward with a proposal.
Their idea: completely reverse the extra tax pressure in box 3, but eliminate an existing tax break for homeowners elsewhere. That tax break, better known as the Wet Hillen, is intended for people who have (almost) fully paid off their mortgages. This group pays a lower taxable value on their home than other homeowners. As a result, those who are nearly mortgage-free end up paying money to the Tax Authorities years earlier.
This proposal achieved a majority, definitively removing the tax increase from the table.
VVD Stands Alone #
Not everyone is happy with the chosen solution. The VVD had presented an alternative that would have partially eased the pain for savers and investors: freezing the highest tax bracket in box 1, so that workers would not fall into the more expensive tax bracket as quickly. VVD MP Wendy van Eijk was critical of the adopted proposal, arguing it would “use future tax revenues to pay for current tax relief.”
During the debate, it quickly became clear that the VVD’s proposal would fail. The majority ultimately chose the path of the ChristenUnie and SGP, meaning the planned box-3 tax increase disappears entirely, but homeowners who are nearly mortgage-free will be financially impacted.