VAT refund on home batteries: how does it work?
The VAT refund on a home battery works as follows: you pay 21% VAT at purchase and reclaim it afterwards from the Tax Administration, provided you use the battery to buy and resell electricity. There won't be a zero VAT rate for home batteries, which the government decided after a request from the House of Representatives.
Below you'll read which conditions apply, how to reclaim the VAT and what you need to arrange afterwards.
How much VAT do you pay on a home battery?
On a home battery you pay 21% VAT, the general VAT rate in the Netherlands. That rate applies to the battery itself and to the installation, even if you buy the battery together with solar panels. If you're browsing the various home batteries, factor in a price including 21% VAT.
Since 1 January 2023, solar panels on and near homes fall under the zero VAT rate, but that exception doesn't apply to a home battery. Whether you get the VAT amount back later mainly depends on how you use the battery: only those who trade in electricity with a suitable battery qualify.
Will there be a zero VAT rate for home batteries?
There won't be a zero VAT rate for home batteries. In June 2026, the House of Representatives asked the government to look into a zero rate, but the 2027 Tax Plan presented on Budget Day didn't include that measure. In early October 2026, the State Secretary informed the House that there won't be a zero rate for home batteries.
The government cites two reasons for this, among others. A zero rate may only apply to goods and services in Annex III of the European VAT Directive, and home batteries aren't on that list. On top of that, a battery that trades in electricity can actually put more strain on the grid during busy times, and a zero rate for all home batteries doesn't account for that.
When can you reclaim VAT on a home battery?
You can reclaim VAT on a home battery when you use the battery to buy and sell electricity and meet all the conditions set by the Tax Administration. The Tax Administration lists these five conditions:
- Electricity trading: you use the home battery to buy and sell electricity, and your energy company pays a fee for the electricity you feed back.
- Energy management system: the battery has an EMS, the software that controls charging and discharging based on the electricity price.
- Dynamic energy contract: your electricity price changes every hour or every quarter of an hour, so the battery can buy when electricity is cheap and sell when electricity is expensive.
- In your name: the invoice for the battery and the energy contract are both in the name of the person reclaiming the VAT.
- No KOR: at the time of purchase and installation, you don't take part in the small businesses scheme.
If you don't meet one of these conditions, the Tax Authority will reject the refund. So before buying, check that your battery, your energy contract and your KOR status are all in order.
Why do you become a VAT entrepreneur with a home battery?
You become a VAT entrepreneur with a home battery because you supply electricity to your energy company and receive compensation for it. Anyone who regularly supplies something for payment is an entrepreneur for VAT purposes, and that also applies to a private individual who sells electricity with a battery.
If you allocate the battery entirely to your business assets, you may fully deduct the VAT on the purchase and installation as input tax. Input tax is the VAT you pay yourself as an entrepreneur and claim back in your return.
When do you not get a VAT refund on your home battery?
You won't get a VAT refund on your home battery if you use the battery only privately, for example to store your own solar energy for the evening. In that case you're not selling any electricity, so you're not a VAT entrepreneur for the battery.
The same applies if your energy company doesn't pay compensation for electricity fed back to the grid, or if feeding back isn't possible with your supplier.
How do you claim back the VAT on your home battery?
You claim back the VAT on your home battery by registering as a VAT entrepreneur and then declaring the VAT you paid in your VAT return. The step-by-step plan looks like this:
- Check your situation in advance: see whether you meet all the conditions and whether you take part in the KOR (small businesses scheme), for example through an earlier VAT refund on solar panels.
- Take out a dynamic energy contract: the contract is in your name and is active when you start using the battery.
- Buy and install the battery: make sure the invoice is in your name and that the EMS is set to trading power, not just to storing your own solar energy.
- Register as a VAT entrepreneur: you do this with the Tax Authority's form 'Opgaaf startende onderneming: eenmanszaak' (Starting business declaration: sole proprietorship).
- Claim the VAT in your return: you enter the VAT on the purchase and installation under section 5b (input tax), preferably as soon as possible and no later than six months after the end of the year in which you bought the battery.
You can complete these steps yourself through the Tax Authority. If you'd rather outsource it, there are services that handle the registration and the returns for you, free of charge with some providers or for a fee.
How long does the VAT refund for a home battery take?
In practice, the VAT refund for a home battery often takes six to eight months after installation. That's because you only submit your VAT return after the quarter ends, and the Tax Authority then reviews the return afterwards.
So if you buy the battery at the start of a quarter, you'll wait longer for your first return than if you buy it at the end of a quarter.
What do you need to do after the VAT refund on your home battery?
After the VAT refund on your home battery, you file a VAT return every quarter, as long as you're not part of the KOR. In that return you report 21% VAT on the compensation you received from your energy company over the past quarter.
There's no fixed-amount flat rate for the home battery, so you calculate that VAT yourself. If you meet the requirements, you can ask the Tax Authority to file one return per year instead of per quarter.
How much VAT do you pay on private use of your home battery?
For private use of your home battery, you pay 21% VAT on the private portion of the purchase costs for five years. In the Tax Authority's calculation example, the battery costs € 10,000 excluding VAT and you divide that amount by five: € 2,000 per year. If you use the battery 45% privately, you pay 21% VAT on € 900, so € 189 per year.
You calculate the percentage of private use yourself using the data from the EMS, supplemented if needed by your energy bills. You report the VAT amount in the last VAT return of the year, under section 1d.
Keep in mind that the net metering scheme ends on 1 January 2027: according to the Tax Authority, this can change the ratio between business and private use. You can read what that ending means for you in our article about the net metering scheme.
Can you join the KOR after reclaiming the VAT on your home battery?
After reclaiming the VAT on your home battery, you're allowed to sign up for the KOR, but you may then pay back part of the VAT. With the KOR you're exempt from VAT and no longer file a VAT return.
The Tax Authority revises the deducted VAT over a period of five years, with one-fifth counting each year. If that annual portion stays below the revision threshold of € 500, you don't have to pay anything back. So if you've deducted less than € 2,500 in VAT in total, you'll stay under that threshold.
VAT you've reclaimed on solar panels in the past five years does count. Factor it in before you sign up for the KOR.
Do you get VAT back on your home battery if you're enrolled in the KOR?
You won't get VAT back on your home battery if you're enrolled in the KOR (small business scheme). This often applies to people who previously reclaimed VAT on solar panels and then signed up for the small business scheme. In that case, first deregister from the KOR in Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk.
A deregistration takes effect on the first day of a calendar quarter and processing takes four weeks, so only buy the battery once the deregistration has taken effect. If you're too late, you can't deduct the full VAT and you'll get at most a portion back.
VAT specialists mention yet another route: your partner buys the battery, if they are not yet a VAT entrepreneur. The invoice and the energy contract are then both in your partner's name.
Can you reclaim VAT on a home battery without solar panels?
Yes, you can reclaim VAT on a home battery without solar panels. The Tax Authority's conditions are about the use of the battery, not about whether you generate your own electricity.
A battery without panels charges from the grid when electricity is cheap and feeds back when electricity is expensive. With an EMS and a dynamic energy contract, you then trade in electricity just as well.
Without solar panels, you get the full benefit of the battery from the price differences on your dynamic contract. Models that you use separately from a solar installation can be found in the collection home battery without solar panels.
What does the VAT refund on your home battery net you?
The VAT refund on your home battery nets you less than 21% of the purchase amount. That's because the 21% is calculated on the price excluding VAT, so from an amount including VAT you get back at most 21/121th part: roughly 17.4%.
As long as you're not in the KOR scheme, the VAT on your feed-in compensation and the VAT on private use are still deducted, plus the cost of a service that arranges the refund for you, if you use one. How quickly you earn back the rest of the investment, you can read in the article about the payback period of a home battery.
Choosing a home battery with the VAT refund in mind
Choosing a home battery with the VAT refund in mind mainly comes down to smart control. Check whether the model has an EMS that steers based on dynamic electricity prices and whether the battery can feed back to the grid. The Anker SOLIX Solarbank Max AC, for example, has a built-in energy management system that steers based on electricity prices; with other brands you check this in the model's specifications.
At TechPunt you'll find, among other things, the Anker SOLIX home batteries and the Zendure home batteries, shipped from our own warehouse in Barneveld and with 2 years of factory warranty. If you're unsure which model suits you, our customer service is happy to think along with you by phone, email or WhatsApp.
This article is not tax advice: for questions about your own VAT situation, you can turn to the Tax Authority or a VAT specialist.
