Dutch fuel prices to go up from January, savings will go into public transport

Fuel will become more expensive in the Netherlands next year, after the Dutch government opted to increase taxes on petrol and diesel. Revenue from the higher tax will be invested in public transport. 

Taxes on fuel to rise next year as government subsidy redirected to public transport

The House of Representatives this week narrowly passed a ChristenUnie proposal to redirect part of a fuel tax break towards public transport. This means that a portion of funds originally earmarked to subsidise the cost of fuel for drivers in the Netherlands will instead be used to avert budget cuts to public transport. 

Without the government subsidy, taxes on fuel will rise - by 3,6 cents per litre for diesel, and by 1,3 cents per litre for petrol. This will result in customers paying higher prices at the pump. 

Fuel tax discount in place in the Netherlands since 2022

The fuel tax discount was originally introduced after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which sent natural gas prices soaring in Europe. 1,7 billion euros in the 2026 budget had been earmarked to continue the subsidy into the new year - a figure now reduced to around 1,3 billion euros. 

The proposal to increase fuel prices was initially not well received by the lower house of parliament, but in the end the CDA and 50Plus got behind the plan, and it passed by a narrow margin. 

Proposal to tax private jets also passed

As NL Times reports, ChristenUnie MP Pieter Grinwis said that the fuel price hike was not ideal, but on balance it was better than further cuts to public transport. He said if budget cuts had gone ahead, many bus lines would have been lost, particularly in rural areas where residents are dependent on a single bus line for transport. He said the measure would also help to hold back price increases on public transport. 

A second motion by GroenLinks-PvdA and Partij voor de Dieren to increase taxes on private jets was also passed by the House of Representatives. From 2030, planes carrying fewer than 20 passengers could be asked to pay a surcharge of up to 2.100 euros per passenger. The scheme is expected to bring in up to 58 million euros per year.