Subsidies spur home energy upgrades
Applications for insulation and other energy measures are rising, but applications are not the same as completed home improvements.
More and more households are using subsidies and financing to make their homes more energy-efficient. Government figures mainly show a sharp rise in subsidy applications, while local implementation figures provide a less complete picture of what has actually been carried out.
The Ministry of Housing and Spatial Planning reports that the number of applications for the Investment Subsidy for Sustainable Energy and Energy Saving rose from 97,000 in 2022 to 212,000 in 2025. The scheme, known as ISDE, supports insulation, heat pumps, solar boilers, connections to a district heating network and electric cooking facilities, among other measures.
The rise in applications does not automatically mean that measures have been carried out in the same number of homes. An application may cover several measures and is often submitted after a measure has been carried out. In addition, other schemes exist for homeowners’ associations, social landlords and municipal neighbourhood programmes.
As part of the local approach to poorly insulated homes, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency reports that, up to and including 23 April 2026, at least one insulation measure had been carried out in 78,064 homes. These figures come from 282 municipalities and have been compiled from progress reports. RVO warns that they indicate an order of magnitude and do not constitute a complete nationwide final tally.
For 2026, €500 million is available under ISDE, supplemented by €5 million for small-scale wind turbines for business users. From this year, homeowners may also receive subsidies for energy-efficient ventilation under certain conditions, provided it is combined with insulation.
The government wants to accelerate the transition further. The National Insulation Programme aims to have insulated 2.5 million homes by 2030. The government has also made €300 million available to speed up the process, as well as an additional €15 million for lower-income households in twenty areas.
Progress remains unevenly distributed. According to the ministry, private tenants, homeowners’ associations and financially vulnerable owner-occupiers are more often falling behind. This is partly due to complex decision-making, limited access to finance and uncertainty about the costs and returns of the measures.
The figures therefore show two developments at once: energy-efficiency improvements are clearly attracting more interest and public support, but the pace of implementation is not the same everywhere. For the climate target, what ultimately matters is not the number of applications, but the number of homes where energy use and heating demand have actually been reduced.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- The number of ISDE applications increased between 2022 and 2025.
- ISDE and local insulation programmes are funded with public money.
- According to the government, vulnerable households, private tenants and homeowners’ associations are more often falling behind.
Left
Arguments Subsidies are needed to prevent the energy transition from benefiting mainly wealthy homeowners. The government should actively support lower-income households and hold landlords to account for poorly insulated homes.
Values Affordability, social justice, security of livelihood and collective responsibility.
Consequences More targeted support costs public money, but reduces fuel poverty and makes climate policy more socially sustainable.
Centre
Arguments A combination of subsidies, loans, standards and municipal guidance is needed. Schemes should be made simpler and demonstrably lead to energy savings, not merely more applications.
Values Efficiency, practicality, affordability and measurable results.
Consequences A phased approach prevents financial shocks, but requires long-term monitoring and cooperation between central government, municipalities and the market.
Right
Arguments Homeowners should retain the freedom to decide which measures suit their homes. Subsidies should remain temporary and limited, so that the government does not permanently determine market prices.
Values Ownership, freedom of choice, lower collective costs and market forces.
Consequences Less subsidy may limit public spending, but could slow energy-efficiency improvements among households unable to fund the investment themselves.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved with corrections · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The figures used come from the national government, RVO and CBS. The text explicitly distinguishes between applications, locally reported measures and homes completed nationwide.
- confirmed The number of ISDE applications rose from 97,000 in 2022 to 212,000 in 2025. — Reported by the national government. source
- confirmed RVO reported 78,064 insulated homes in 282 municipalities up to and including April 2026. — Reported on the page about the Local Insulation Approach. source
- confirmed €500 million is available under ISDE in 2026. — Reported on the general ISDE page. source
- confirmed The National Insulation Programme is targeting 2.5 million insulated homes by 2030. — Reported by the national government. source
1 correction(s) applied
- Was: Record number of homes made energy-efficient with subsidies.Now: More subsidy applications for energy-efficiency improvements, while local figures show some of the measures carried out. (The sources measure applications and locally reported measures, not a single nationwide record of completed homes.)
Editor's note
The rise in subsidy applications, the ISDE budget and the local RVO figures have been confirmed. There is no single up-to-date nationwide counter combining all completed energy-efficiency improvements under the various schemes.Sources
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