Cabinet extends 500-rule cut to rules affecting residents and professionals
The cabinet wants to scrap or simplify 250 rules for residents and professionals, and 250 for businesses, between July 2026 and July 2027.
The cabinet is widening its 500-rule approach (500-regelaanpak), which tackles rules that do not work well, from businesses alone to residents and professionals too. The ambition is to scrap or simplify 500 rules between 1 July 2026 and 1 July 2027, the Rijksoverheid announced.
What changes for you
- Until now the approach, started under the previous cabinet, covered only businesses. It now also covers rules for residents and professionals.
- From 1 July 2026 to 1 July 2027: 250 rules for residents and professionals, 250 for businesses.
- From 1 July 2027 to 31 December 2027: another 250 rules, split 50/50.
- From 1 January 2028: 500 rules a year, again split 50/50.
Concrete targets have been set for each department. The work can mean scrapping rules, less frequent reporting, better digital data exchange, or simpler forms and processes.
Ministries will work with entrepreneurs, residents, professionals, public service providers, other governments and inspectorates. The state secretary for Interior and Kingdom Relations coordinates. The cabinet says the focus is not only on the number of rules, but on tackling those that residents, professionals and businesses run into most.
People and businesses too often stumble over complicated and contradictory rules.Eric van der Burg, state secretary for Kingdom Relations and an Efficient Government (Slagvaardig Overheid)
Economic Affairs and Climate Minister Heleen Herbert said regulatory burden often makes doing business needlessly complex and expensive, and is bad for economic growth.
Progress will be shown on the rule counter of the Regeldrukmonitor, the regulatory burden monitor for businesses, and in progress reports on an efficient government. Rules that need a change in law can use the simplification act (Vereenvoudigingswet), which the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of parliament, was informed about in September. The cabinet says it allows changes much faster than a regular law change.
Tweede Kamer
The House of Representatives, the lower and more powerful house of the Dutch parliament. Its 150 members are elected directly; it can amend bills and holds the cabinet to account.
Regeldrukmonitor
The regulatory burden monitor is a government tracking tool that displays the administrative workload imposed on businesses. It records the progress of initiatives aimed at reducing unnecessary rules and bureaucratic procedures. This provides transparency on national efforts to create a more efficient regulatory environment.
Vereenvoudigingswet
The simplification act is a legislative mechanism that bundles multiple minor changes to existing laws into a single bill. It allows the government to efficiently implement the legal adjustments required to reduce administrative burdens. Processing these changes together accelerates the removal of unnecessary regulations for businesses and citizens.