The Dutch government has included the issue of energy tax being charged twice on electricity stored in home batteries in its national "500-rule simplification programme".

In the document, the government states that it wants to prevent the same unit of electricity from being taxed multiple times as it moves through the energy system, as this could slow the development of home storage and vehicle-to-grid (V2G) applications.

However, this does not mean that the tax change has already taken effect. The Dutch Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy are currently working with industry stakeholders to identify a solution for the period after 2026. The precise tax treatment, metering method and implementation timeline have yet to be determined.

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Not Every Unit of Stored Electricity Is Taxed Twice

In the Netherlands, energy tax is triggered not by who ultimately consumes the electricity, but by whether electricity is supplied to a user. As a result, double taxation does not occur in every storage scenario.

  • Solar electricity generated, stored and consumed behind the same meter: no energy tax applies.
  • Electricity purchased from the grid, stored in a battery and later consumed by the same household: energy tax is paid once.
  • Electricity generated by rooftop solar, stored and later exported to the grid: the final consumer pays energy tax once.

Potential double taxation arises in the following chain: electricity is drawn from the grid, stored in a battery, exported back to the grid and then supplied to another user.

The household pays energy tax when drawing electricity from the grid. If that electricity is subsequently exported and supplied to another consumer, a second taxable supply may occur.

Strictly speaking, the same person is not being taxed twice. Instead, the same unit of electricity is counted as a taxable supply at two different stages of the chain. This is particularly problematic for home batteries and V2G systems seeking to earn revenue by charging when prices are low, discharging when prices are high or participating in electricity markets through an aggregator.

If the Same Electricity Is Taxed Again Along the Chain, How Much Value Remains for Energy Trading?

The issue is likely to become more visible after the Netherlands ends its net-metering scheme for small consumers in 2027.

Under the current system, electricity exported by households can be offset against electricity drawn from the grid, making the double-taxation issue less apparent. Once net metering ends, double energy taxation may arise when a home battery charges from the grid, stores the electricity, exports it and that electricity is ultimately supplied to another consumer.

This also explains why the Dutch government has referred not only to home batteries, but also to V2G. Once an electric vehicle battery begins participating in grid dispatch, the same questions arise: where did the exported electricity come from, has it already been taxed and how should it be accounted for?

The main challenge is not the policy position. It is what happens behind the meter.

The Dutch government has previously acknowledged that the difficulty is not recognising that double taxation is undesirable. The problem is that the existing metering system cannot clearly identify how electricity moves behind a household meter. Any solution must also address legal requirements, administrative costs, tax enforcement and verification.

A smart meter can record electricity flowing between a user and the public grid, but it cannot determine whether a particular unit of electricity came from rooftop solar, the grid or a battery that had previously been charged. When solar panels, household loads, batteries and electric vehicles operate simultaneously, electricity flows become mixed behind the meter.

Tax Authorities Cannot Easily Determine Which Electricity Has Already Been Taxed and Which Should Be Exempt

The Dutch government is examining more detailed monitoring and metering options, including whether additional metering could be installed at the battery level to identify when a unit of electricity has been stored and whether energy tax has already been paid.

Any solution would need to meet three conditions:

  • It must not create an excessive administrative burden.
  • Energy suppliers and tax authorities must be able to implement it.
  • Tax authorities must be able to verify the data.

This cannot be resolved simply by announcing the removal of "double taxation". Whether the policy can be implemented will depend on establishing a settlement mechanism linking meters, data systems, aggregation platforms, energy suppliers and tax authorities—one that can clearly identify, calculate and verify each relevant electricity flow.

Based on the information currently available, including double energy taxation in the government's regulatory simplification programme at least shows that the Netherlands is beginning to consider home storage and V2G within the broader framework of electricity markets, taxation and grid flexibility.