Prinsjesdag 2025: What the Dutch government’s budget means for you

The Dutch government announced the official budget for the coming year. Here’s what you need to know about Prinsjesdag 2025 and what the 2026 budget means for you.

The Netherlands’ Budget Day 2025

Every year, on the third Tuesday of September, Prinsjesdag (Prince’s Day) is hosted in The Hague. This is a key date on the political calendar as it is the day the Dutch government announces the budget for the coming year, with King Willem-Alexander giving a speech from the throne to officially open the Dutch parliamentary season.

Last year was the first Budget Day for the Schoof I cabinet, which has since collapsed after the PVV pulled out of the coalition in June. The NSC also pulled out in August, the first time that a political party has ever pulled out of a collapsed government. Only the VVD and BBB remain, holding 32 of the 150 seats of parliament. This means that there won’t be any controversial policies included in the budget as the parties will struggle to get majority support. 

“At the start of this parliamentary year, the reach of government policy is limited even more than usual to what is permitted by parliament,” said King Willem-Alexander as he started his annual "Speech from the Throne". “At the same time, we cannot simply press ‘pause’ on people’s day-to-day concerns about work, communities, and housing.”

During his speech this year, the Dutch King reflected on the success of the NATO Summit held in The Hague during the summer. The King also stated that 80 years after the Second World War, “issues of peace and security” are relevant again. Some of the main issues that the outgoing cabinet wants to address include migration, allowances, social security, healthcare and nitrogen emissions.

2026 budget announced by Dutch government

Here’s a brief overview of the key announcements made on Prinsjesdag:

Income, taxes and purchasing power

Purchasing power for households in the Netherlands is set to increase by an average of 1,3 percent in 2026. Workers in the Netherlands will see their incomes increase by 1,2 percent, while benefit recipients will see a rise of 1,3 percent and pensioners 1,5 percent.

Last year, the government announced plans to increase the VAT for books, concerts, museums and other recreational activities from 9 percent to 21 percent, but later scrapped the police after struggling to get opposition parties to agree. According to a government press release, to make up for this reversal, income tax brackets will not be adjusted for inflation. This means that the first income tax bracket will increase from 38.441 euros to 38.883 euros next year, and the second will rise from 76.817 euros to 79.137 euros.

Healthcare

Premiums for health insurance in the Netherlands will be allowed to rise by around 3 euros per month. The exact amount by which premiums will increase will be announced later by health insurance providers.

Infrastructure

Last year, the Dutch government announced plans to cut 110 million euros from the budget for public transport in the Dutch cities of Amsterdam, The Hague and Rotterdam. In this year's budget, these plans have been scrapped. 

Education

The educational opportunities scheme, which provides support to children from disadvantaged families, was set to be scrapped, but with the new plans, the government aims to reverse these cuts. 

Crime and security

More money will be invested in the Dutch prison system to prevent overcrowding. From 2028, an extra 35 million euros will be allocated for prisons, increasing to 50 million euros from 2031. 

Budget for 2026 to be debated

In the government programme released on the Friday before Prinsjesdag, officials announced plans to allocate funds to pay for the extension of the petrol tax cut, other budget cut reversals and for a nitrogen fund. Additionally, 430 million euros will be made available for the tech industry, reports NOS. 

The main budget proposals will be debated with the parliament and Prime Minister Dick Schoof on Wednesday and Thursday. With the elections set to take place on October 29, the two-day debate will likely see every party make its own political case.