Higher rents, more expensive stamps, but also rising minimum wages and benefits. A number of financial matters will change again on July 1. NU.nl lists the most important changes.
Let’s start with the good news. Minimum wages will increase slightly next month. The hourly wage will increase from 14.06 to 14.40 euros per hour. The minimum youth wage will also increase.
The benefits are linked to the minimum wage and will therefore also increase. For example, the AOW (Dutch state pension) will increase by about 2 percent, giving recipients a few extra tens of euros per month. On the other hand, the holiday allowance for AOW recipients will decrease slightly. The WW (unemployment benefit) and social assistance will also be increased.
Internet and TV more expensive
Unfortunately, not only income is increasing. Some expenses will also increase. For example, many customers of telecom providers KPN and VodafoneZiggo will pay more. They must take into account an increase of more than 3 percent, with the companies referring to inflation figures from statistics bureau CBS.
Anyone with internet and TV from KPN will pay an extra 1.40 to 2.64 euros per month. The exact increase depends on the subscription. VodafoneZiggo will follow a similar increase, with the exact amount also depending on the type of contract.
Housing rents up 5 percent
A measure that will hurt many people is the increase in rents. Landlords may increase the prices of social housing by a maximum of 5 percent.
The measure means that someone who now pays 600 euros per month may have to pay an extra 30 euros per month from July. Corporations and other landlords are not obliged to increase their prices by 5 percent. They can opt for a smaller increase.
Those with a high income may face a larger increase. At the same time, tenants who pay less than 350 euros per month must take into account a maximum increase of 25 euros. That is more than 7 percent.
The cabinet initially wanted to freeze rents. But that met with resistance from housing corporations. They feared that they would have less money left over for the construction of new houses and went to court to get their way. A lawsuit was ultimately not necessary, because Minister Mona Keijzer of Housing stopped the resistance.
Stamps even more expensive
The price of a stamp will increase again next month, this time by 10 cents. It is the largest increase since 2014 and will make a stamp cost 1.31 euros. According to PostNL, this is necessary to maintain the quality of postal delivery. Delivery is under pressure because companies and individuals are sending fewer and fewer letters.
Some other rates will also increase. For example, it will soon cost 2 euros to send a letter abroad. Now that is still 1.90 euros. Registered letters will be 50 cents more expensive.
Registration obligation for segways and electric steps
Special mopeds with an electric or combustion engine that cannot go faster than 25 kilometers per hour will have a registration obligation from July 1. This concerns e-steps, after-school care buses and segways. They will soon have a blue license plate that starts with the capital letter E.
New vehicles must have a registration immediately. There is a transition period of one year for vehicles that are already in use. Applying for a registration costs 18 euros.
Higher feed-in compensation for panel owners
Customers of Essent and subsidiary EnergieDirect will receive more for electricity they supply back to the grid from July 1. Now they still receive 5 cents per kilowatt hour. That will increase to 15 cents next month. That compensation only applies to the electricity that households generate more than they consume in a whole year. The feed-in costs for all supplied electricity remain the same.
Due to the price changes, the supplied electricity will again yield something for the panel owners. In the old situation, they paid more for the electricity they supplied than they received for it.
Fines for polluting vans in environmental zones
Anyone who enters an emission-free zone with a van can be fined for this from July 1. This concerns, among other things, the four major cities: Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam and Utrecht. You can also be fined in municipalities such as Zwolle, Gouda, Maastricht and Tilburg.
The measure should ensure that air quality in cities improves. The fines also apply to trucks, but not to passenger cars.