Rent limits are based on your points and when your contract was signed.
If you have a self-contained home and your contract was signed on or after 1 July 2024, the points cap covers up to 186 points. In 2026, 186 points usually gives a maximum bare rent of €1,228.07. To possibly get a reduction from the start, submit your request within 6 months after the tenancy begins. Older contracts, rooms, and later claims use the procedures described below.
This guide is intended for tenants who rent a home or room in the Netherlands.
How does the puntensysteem calculate the maximum rent?
The woningwaarderingsstelsel (WWS, housing valuation system) awards points to your home based on its size, facilities, and other features. Every point score has a maximum kale huur (bare rent). Bare rent covers only the home itself, before service costs and utilities. The Huurcommissie (Rent Tribunal) uses these main features in its calculation:
- Floor area: measure the rooms and other spaces that count for the rent check.
- WOZ-waarde (official property value): the value determined by the gemeente (municipality).
- Energy performance: the energy label for the home.
- Kitchen: the length of the counter and extra fittings that qualify.
- Bathroom and toilet: their fittings and whether you have these facilities privately or share them.
- Heating and cooling: the installations that serve each room.
- Private outdoor space: such as a garden, terrace, or balcony.
For most self-contained homes, energy labels E, F, and G reduce the score by 4, 9, and 15 points respectively. Listed monuments do not receive these deductions. Check the energy-label rules.
Each year, the government updates the maximum bare rent for every point score. From 1 January 2025, landlords must provide the point count with every newly signed contract, including a free-sector contract. Compare the calculation with your own measurements.
A room or another non-self-contained home is assessed with the woningwaarderingsstelsel voor onzelfstandige woonruimte (WWSO, room valuation system). It looks at private and shared floor area, facilities, energy performance, and location or WOZ information. Rooms, mobile homes, and mobile-home pitches have separate checks. Their rents stay regulated no matter the score.
What limits apply to self-contained homes in 2026?
For contracts that start in 2026, the table shows the standard maximum at the top of each range. The points and the starting bare rent together decide the rent segment.
Wide tables can be scrolled sideways.
| WWS score | 2026 boundary | What the result means |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 143 points | 143 points: €932.93 maximum | Social range. Each score has its own listed maximum. For a contract signed from 1 July 2024, asking more does not remove the cap. |
| 144–186 points | 186 points: €1,228.07 maximum | For contracts signed from 1 July 2024, the score’s maximum applies even if the agreed starting rent was higher. For a tenancy starting in 2026, starting bare rent of €932.93 or less makes it social; higher starting rent makes a 144–186-point home middle rent. |
| 187 points or more | No WWS cap when the 2026 starting bare rent is above €1,228.07 | Both conditions make a 2026 contract free sector. A lower starting rent can place the contract in a regulated segment; ask the Huurcommissie if the classification is disputed. |
Whether the rules introduced on 1 July 2024 apply depends on the date both parties signed. The tenancy start date determines which year’s monetary limit applies.
Some homes may have a legal surcharge on top of the table amount. Examples are listed monuments and qualifying newly built middle-rent homes. This surcharge increases the allowed rent but does not change the rent segment. Ask the landlord for proof and check the Huurcommissie’s surcharge rules.
Example: you sign a contract and begin the tenancy in January 2026 for a home with 143 points and no legal surcharge. The landlord asks for €1,000 bare rent per month. The 2026 maximum is €932.93, so the difference is €67.07 per month.
For 2026, these are the maximum standard rent increases.
You can move wide tables sideways by scrolling.
| Sector | 2026 maximum standard increase | Effective from |
|---|---|---|
| Social housing | 4.1% | 1 July 2026 |
| Middle rent | 6.1% | 1 January 2026 |
| Free sector | 4.4% | 1 January 2026 |
If a middle-rent or free-sector contract agrees to a lower increase, that lower increase still applies. Social rents under €350 may increase by €25 rather than 4.1%. Income-dependent social increases and increases after improvements have their own conditions.
For a regulated home, an increase may not push the rent above its point-based maximum, including any legal surcharge. The Dutch rental-contract guide explains how to check an increase.
How do I check my rent?
The free Huurprijscheck (rent check) comes in separate versions for self-contained homes, rooms, and mobile homes and pitches. For a self-contained home, it asks for measurements, the WOZ value, the energy label, and facilities. A measurement error or a misunderstood question can change the outcome. In an eligible dispute, the Huurcommissie makes its own calculation.
A self-contained home has its own entrance, kitchen, toilet, and washing facilities. Shared households have additional classification rules. If three or more people rent together, check the official self-contained-home rules before you choose a check.
Before you sign, compare the asking bare rent with your Huurprijscheck result. After you move in, complete all these checks:
- Measure the rooms.
- Verify the energy label.
- Verify the WOZ value.
- Compare the result with your bare rent, leaving out service costs and utilities.
Keep the result, photographs, measurements, and the landlord’s point count. If the counts are different, keep both.
Warning
Remember the six-month filing deadline
Talking with your landlord does not extend the six-month deadline for an initial-rent assessment. Send in the form before that deadline, even if talks are still going on.
What rules apply to my contract?
The Wet betaalbare huur (Affordable Rent Act) brought in middle-rent protection from 1 July 2024. The key date is when both parties signed. The date the contract was drafted and the tenancy start date do not determine which rules apply. Earlier contracts follow the transitional rules below.
Wide tables can be scrolled sideways.
| Situation | Rent protection now |
|---|---|
| Contract signed on or after 1 July 2024; self-contained home has up to 186 points | The WWS maximum applies. Request an initial-rent assessment within six months, or use the written-proposal route later. |
| Contract signed before 1 July 2024; starting bare rent was at or below the liberalisatiegrens (free-sector boundary) then in force | This is an existing social tenancy. WWS protection continues, and you can seek a future reduction based on points. |
| Contract signed before 1 July 2024; starting rent was above that limit; home now has up to 143 points | Since 1 July 2025, the current WWS maximum applies. Send a written reduction proposal if the landlord has not adjusted the rent. |
| Contract signed before 1 July 2024; starting rent was above that limit; home now has 144–186 points | The middle-rent cap does not apply during this tenancy. Only a timely initial-rent assessment could have reclassified it. |
| Contract signed before 1 July 2024; starting rent was above that limit; home now has 187 points or more | The tenancy remains free sector and has no WWS rent cap. Contract and annual-increase rules still apply. |
| Room or other non-self-contained home | The separate WWSO maximum applies regardless of the signature date. Use the room version of the Huurprijscheck. |
When can I receive a rent reduction or refund?
File the Toetsing aanvangshuurprijs (initial-rent assessment) within 6 months after the tenancy begins. It must relate to your first contract with this landlord for this home. A renewal or a change of landlord does not restart this window. The Huurcommissie assesses the home as it was on the start date. If the starting rent was too high, the lower rent applies from that date. Ask the landlord to repay the difference. Continue paying the agreed rent while the case is pending.
There is one exception for a qualifying temporary contract of no more than 2 years signed before 1 July 2024. You may file until 6 months after it ends. This extension does not apply to a temporary contract signed on or after 1 July 2024.
How can I request a later rent reduction?
After the six-month period, a tenant covered by the points cap can ask for a future reduction. This later procedure does not recover overpayments from earlier. Follow these steps:
- Send the landlord a written proposal. Include the current bare rent, the reduction amount, the proposed new rent, and the effective date. Attach the point count.
- Leave at least 2 full calendar months between the date the landlord receives the proposal and your proposed effective date.
- Should the landlord refuse or fail to respond, submit your case to the Huurcommissie no later than 6 weeks after that date. You can file sooner if you can show a refusal or no response.
How can I challenge servicekosten (service charges)?
Service costs are charged on top of the bare rent. They may cover cleaning of shared areas, a caretaker, utilities, or movable furniture. The landlord may charge only costs that were actually incurred. Every year, the landlord must send an itemised statement by 30 June for the previous calendar year. The statement compares your advance payments with the actual costs. You may owe an additional payment or get a refund.
To dispute the service-cost statement, follow these steps:
- Write to the landlord. Ask for the missing statement, or request that disputed charges be changed and identify each disputed cost.
- Give the landlord 3 weeks to respond.
- If the problem continues, ask the Huurcommissie to assess the service-cost statement.
The filing deadline is 2 years after the statement was due. For 2025 costs, the deadline is 30 June 2028. The decision is binding for social tenancies and for every contract signed on or after 1 July 2024. For an older free-sector contract, the Huurcommissie can give advice only if both parties agreed in writing to use it.
The eight-category service-cost rules starting in 2027 apply automatically to contracts signed on or after 1 January 2027. An existing contract uses them only if both parties agree.
If your contract has one all-in price with no separate amounts for bare rent and additional costs, the Huurcommissie can split it. If an initial-rent assessment or a points-based rent-reduction case is already underway, it makes the split in that case. You do not need to make a separate request.
How can I start a Huurcommissie case?
An initial-rent case goes directly to the Huurcommissie. A later points case requires the written proposal first. Begin in MijnHuurcommissie (Rent Tribunal portal) and upload the contract, point count, and relevant correspondence.
In 2026, a tenant pays €25 in advance. If you are fully successful, the Huurcommissie refunds the full €25. If you are partly successful, it refunds part of it. You can ask for a fee waiver if your income is at minimum or social-assistance level.
For an initial assessment, choose the initial-rent form. For a later reduction, choose the points-based reduction form. The case goes through these stages:
- Send the correct form before the filing deadline. A late request may be ruled inadmissible.
- Pay the fee on time.
- Provide any information the Huurcommissie asks for.
- Let the investigation take place. An examiner often visits for a points case. Both parties receive the report and may respond.
- Read the decision. A chair may decide in writing, or a committee may hold a hearing. The decision states the rent, the date it takes effect, and who pays the fee.
Most decisions by the Huurcommissie are binding and count as a new agreement, unless a party begins a permitted challenge in time. If a chair decided in writing, you may file verzet (an objection to the Huurcommissie) within 3 weeks after the dispatch date. You may also go to the kantonrechter (sub-district court) within 8 weeks after that date. After a committee decision, including one that follows verzet, the court deadline is 8 weeks. Check your decision for the dispatch date and appeal instructions.
Continue paying the current rent until the decision. After that, follow the amount and date stated in the decision. Seek advice if either party starts court proceedings.
What action can the gemeente take against overcharging?
Every gemeente has a meldpunt, or reporting point, for landlord misconduct. Your landlord has to give you the contact details for it. Look on the official website of your gemeente and search for “meldpunt goed verhuurderschap” (landlord-misconduct reporting point). From 1 January 2025, a gemeente can also enforce the point-based maximum. What the gemeente does depends on the facts: it may warn the landlord, impose an order with a financial penalty, issue a fine, or in the end take over management.
It is not the gemeente that determines a lower rent for you or grants repayment. In a dispute that qualifies, the Huurcommissie sets the rent. Repayment can be ordered by a court. A no-cost report to the meldpunt may proceed at the same time as a Huurcommissie case. The address-registration problems guide deals with a landlord who prevents registration.
How can I handle typical rent issues?
What should I do when the rent in my contract is higher than the maximum?
Even after you sign a contract, a statutory rent cap continues to apply. When the six-month deadline has not yet passed, follow the initial-rent procedure. You may file it without a later reduction proposal. Once that deadline has passed, submit the formal proposal including the required amounts, the effective date and the point count. An informal request by itself does not meet these requirements.
If an older free-sector contract has a score of 144–186 points, the middle-rent cap is not applied for the current tenancy. Look at the transitional table before you file.
What can I do if the landlord does not follow the Huurcommissie decision?
Check the rent and the effective date stated in the decision. When the decision shows that you paid too much, ask the landlord in writing for repayment. The Huurcommissie is not the body that collects the money. If the landlord says no, consult the Juridisch Loket (legal advice service) or a local huurteam (tenant-support team) about the money claim.
Seek advice before you subtract a claimed refund from future rent. If you deduct it, a dispute about unpaid rent may arise. A report to the gemeente can deal with ongoing overcharging, but it cannot get back earlier payments. A court case begun within the 8-week period can reopen the rent dispute.
What happens if the landlord disagrees with the point count?
Differences between your result and the landlord’s count may come from measurements, the energy label or the WOZ value. The Huurcommissie can inspect the home and work out its own score. It sends the report to both parties so they can comment.
For a later reduction case, an energy label registered after the proposed effective date may still be counted. That label must be registered before the decision and must show the home’s condition on the proposed effective date. Improvements made in the meantime cannot be counted. The energy-label policy updated on 16 July 2026 establishes these conditions. Keep dated photographs, measurements and a copy of the label.
What if the landlord bills furniture separately?
Charges for movable furniture and equipment go through service costs. The Huurcommissie begins with the landlord’s purchase invoices. For items expected to last 5 years, it usually permits 20% of the value each year. For items with a 10-year life, it permits 10% each year. Items that last longer may use different rates. Once the initial lifespan ends, the Huurcommissie values the items again and recalculates any continuing yearly charge based on that value.
Built-in fixtures and other immovable items may not be charged as movable furniture. Request the itemised statement and the invoices. A furniture charge remains separate from bare rent, so it does not shift a regulated home into the free sector.
Which rent procedure should I follow?
When the six-month deadline is still running, file the initial-rent form before it ends. If not, check whether the cap applies before you use the formal proposal and its 6-week follow-up deadline. Keep all five records: the signed contract, the landlord’s point count, your Huurprijscheck result, the split between bare rent and service costs, and all correspondence.
When the contract dates from before 1 July 2024, or the classification is not clear, ask a local huurteam or the Juridisch Loket to check the route before you change what you pay.
Go on with these guides:
Official Sources
- Government.nl: Step-by-step plan for tenants - the 2026 segment boundaries (social up to €932.93, mid-rent €932.93–€1,228.07 at 144–186 points, free sector above €1,228.07 at 187+ points), that shared rooms are always regulated, the 6-month window to have a free-sector starting rent assessed, that regulated rents can be checked at any time, and that service costs may only be actual costs with a yearly overview
- Rijksoverheid (Dutch government): Wat is het verschil tussen een sociale huurwoning, een middenhuurwoning en een huurwoning in de vrije sector? - the 2026 definitions of the three segments by starting rent and points, and that the free sector has no maximum rent
- Rijksoverheid: Hoeveel huur betaal ik maximaal voor mijn woning? - the WWS factors, the separate checks for self-contained homes, rooms, mobile homes and pitches, the distinction between bare and all-in rent, and the written-proposal route for a later reduction
- Volkshuisvesting Nederland (government housing portal): Wet betaalbare huur - official topic hub; detailed contract and enforcement rules are on the FAQ page below
- Volkshuisvesting Nederland: veelgestelde vragen Wet betaalbare huur - the point-count duty since 1 January 2025, the room rules, transition rules for contracts signed before 1 July 2024, retroactive effect within six months, and the distinction between Huurcommissie decisions and gemeente enforcement
- Rijksoverheid: Welke invloed heeft het energielabel op de huurpunten van mijn woning? - that good energy labels add points while labels E, F and G subtract 4, 9 and 15 points for most homes
- Rijksoverheid: Maximale huurverhoging 2026 - the 2026 maximum rent increases: 4.1% social (from 1 July 2026), 6.1% mid-rent and 4.4% free sector (from 1 January 2026)
- Huurcommissie: Huurprijscheck - the free official rent check, with separate versions for self-contained homes, rooms and mobile homes
- Huurcommissie: WWS in initial-rent and later rent-reduction procedures - the strict 6-month initial-rent deadline, the limited exception for qualifying temporary contracts signed before 1 July 2024, retroactive effect, the formal reduction proposal, the 2-calendar-month notice and the 6-week filing deadline
- Huurcommissie: Een zaak bij de Huurcommissie - the online case process, the €25 tenant fee and €500 landlord fee, full or partial refunds according to the outcome, the low-income waiver, investigation and hearing steps
- Huurcommissie: Na de uitspraak - that a ruling is usually binding and counts as a new agreement between tenant and landlord, and the 8-week window to take the dispute to the kantonrechter
- Huurcommissie: Jaarafrekening servicekosten beoordelen - the 30 June statement deadline, written request and 3-week response period, 2-year filing deadline, and binding versus advisory assessments
- Huurcommissie: Beleidsboek servicekosten (roerende zaken) - the service-cost policy manual’s furniture charges based on invoices, annual percentages for 5-year and 10-year items, revaluation and immovable fixtures
- Rijksoverheid: Nieuwe regels servicekosten per 1 januari 2027 - the 8 permitted service-cost categories for contracts signed from 1 January 2027, the opt-in rule for existing contracts and the Huurcommissie’s expanded assessment powers
- Rijksoverheid: Regels voor verhuurders en verhuurbemiddelaars - the conduct rules for landlords, the municipal reporting point whose contact details the landlord must give you, and the gemeente sanctions including fines and taking over the management of a property
- Overheid.nl (government information portal): Wet betaalbare huur — Staatsblad (official law gazette) 2024, 193 - legal basis for regulated middle rent and transitional protection for older contracts
- Overheid.nl: Besluit betaalbare huur (Affordable Rent Decree) — Staatsblad 2024, 194 - legal basis for the 186-point boundary and rent surcharges that do not change the rent segment
- Huurcommissie: Basisinformatie woningwaardering - signature-date rule, self-contained-home classification and annual rent-table indexation
- Huurcommissie: Maximale huurprijsgrenzen voor zelfstandige woningen - 2026 maximum rents of €932.93 at 143 points and €1,228.07 at 186 points; worked example uses this table
- Huurcommissie: Woningwaardering en prijsopslagen - point inputs, legal rent surcharges and the conditions for counting a later-registered energy label
- Huurcommissie: Huurprijs bij een nieuw of tijdelijk contract beoordelen - initial-rent form, keep-paying instruction and requesting repayment after a rent reduction
- Huurcommissie: Wat kost een procedure? - 2026 tenant fee, full and partial refunds, and low-income fee waiver
- Huurcommissie: In verzet tegen een voorzittersuitspraak - current 3-week objection deadline measured from dispatch of a chair’s decision
- Huurcommissie: Wet toekomstbestendige huurcommissie - confirms the objection period is currently 3 weeks; the adopted change to 6 weeks is expected in 2027
- Huurcommissie: Jaarlijkse huurverhoging beoordelen - the point-based maximum remains a ceiling for a regulated annual increase
- Huurcommissie: Huurverhoging na woningverbetering beoordelen - separate improvement-increase conditions and the point-based ceiling
- Huurcommissie: Energielabel geregistreerd na peildatum - 16 July 2026 policy change limited to rent reduction after a proposal
- Huurcommissie: MijnHuurcommissie - official entry point to the case portal
- Juridisch Loket: juridisch advies - legal advice service for tenants needing help with a money claim
- Overheid.nl: Besluit goed verhuurderschap (Good Landlordship Decree) — Staatsblad 2023, 193 - national duty to provide a municipal reporting point where reports are free
- Rechtspraak (Dutch courts): Huurconflicten - court route for a rental dispute, including claims for money
- Volkshuisvesting Nederland: Gemeentelijk meldpunt goed verhuurderschap - the official name of the municipal landlord-misconduct reporting point and local reporting arrangements
- Huurcommissie: All-in prijs splitsen - If your contract gives one all-in price without separate amounts for bare rent and additional costs, the Huurcommissie can split it. If an initial-rent assessment or points-based rent-reduction case is already running, it makes the split within that case. You do not need a separate request.