March 27, 2023

Since 21 March 2023, eligible Dutch SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) can apply for the energy cost allowance to the Dutch government. This energy cost allowance is intended as a temporary measure to compensate the increased costs of gas and electricity costs of energy-intensive SMEs.

Requirements

To be eligible for this allowance, an enterprise must:

  • have no more than 249 employees;
  • have a turnover of not more than 50 million EUR or balance sheet total of 43 million EUR;
  • Be located in the Netherlands and registered at the Chamber of Commerce at latest on 31 December 2022;
  • Have energy costs amounting to or exceeding 7% of the revenue in 2022; and
  • Have a business energy contract, with a minimum price of 1.19 EUR per m³ for gas and 0.35 EUR per kWh for electricity.

Foundations (stichtingen), associations (verenigingen) and other institutions that fulfil these requirements can also apply for the allowance. It is expected that several tens of thousands of enterprises will be eligible.

If all of the requirements above are fulfilled, the enterprises will receive maximum 35% of the price difference between the minimum price mentioned above and the maximum price set by the government (3.19 EUR per m³ for gas and 0.95 EUR per kWh for electricity), but with a maximum of 160,000 EUR.

Application process

While sole traders (eenmanszaak) can apply for this allowance with a DigiD (personal governmental login credentials), other enterprises, for example limited liability companies, need to an ‘eHerkenning ‘ account, which is a digital identification system for legal persons. Since the process of obtaining an eHerkenning account can be lengthy and complex, it is advisable to start the application process well in advance.

Once the login credentials are obtained, the application can be made online via Netherlands Enterprise Agency on https://mijn.rvo.nl/tek. After the application, a decision will be made within 8 weeks.

Please feel free to contact CIS Management for further information.