BREEAM-NL scores and levels: from Pass to Outstanding
BREEAM-NL gives your building a score in percent, which translates into five ratings: Pass, Good, Very Good, Excellent and Outstanding. The higher the score, the more stars and the more sustainable the building. This scale is managed by the Dutch Green Building Council and is set out in the BREEAM-NL guideline . The score comes from the nine categories you can find under how it works, and it partly determines your tax benefit.
The rating is a grade, not a simple yes or no. A building with Pass meets the basics. A building with Outstanding belongs to the absolute top. Below you can see exactly which score matches which rating, and how often each level occurs in practice.
Which score matches which rating?
New construction and renovation and Area use the same scale in v6.1.1. (In the change document for Area v6.1.1, DGBC states that all schemes receive the same scores for Pass and Good.) In-Use differs at the lower end.
New construction and Area
| Rating | Minimum score | Stars |
|---|---|---|
| Pass | 25% | 1 star |
| Good | 40% | 2 stars |
| Very Good | 55% | 3 stars |
| Excellent | 70% | 4 stars |
| Outstanding | 85% | 5 stars |
If you score less than 25%, the building receives no rating. This is called Unclassified. The threshold for Pass used to be 30% and for Good 45%. Older sources still mention those figures.
In-Use (existing buildings)
| Rating | Minimum score |
|---|---|
| Pass | 15% |
| Good | 40% |
| Very Good | 55% |
| Excellent | 70% |
| Outstanding | 85% |
In-Use therefore has a lower entry point: Pass from 15%. Below 15%, the building is Unclassified. You can read more about this scheme on the In-Use page.
The score is rounded to whole percentages. If you are just below a threshold, a single extra credit can make the difference between Very Good and Excellent. That often matters for value and for tax benefit.
How rare is each level?
DGBC links each rating to a share of the building stock. This is an indication of how ambitious a level is, not a hard measurement per year.
| Rating | Level of ambition | Indicative share of stock |
|---|---|---|
| Pass | standard good practice | approximately 75% |
| Good | average practice | approximately 50% |
| Very Good | above average | approximately 25% |
| Excellent | best practice | approximately 10% |
| Outstanding | frontrunner | less than 1% |
An example makes this concrete. A renovated office that meets the modern requirements well often achieves Very Good. If you want to attract investors and large tenants, you aim for Excellent. Outstanding is for projects that are truly leading, for example with an energy-neutral design and circular materials.
Not just collecting points
You do not reach a rating simply by adding up credits. Each level has minimum requirements. For Outstanding, for example, you must score on certain mandatory credits, regardless of your total. If you miss a mandatory credit, you drop back, even if your total percentage is high.
This prevents a building from gaining many points on easy items while failing on something important such as energy. Which credits are mandatory depends on your scheme and your target level. The Expert maps this out early, so you are not caught out by surprises.
Which level do you need?
That depends on your goal. Do you mainly want access to MIA and Vamil? Then the Milieulijst (Environmental List) determines which minimum level counts, and a higher level gives a larger deduction. Do you want to let a building to a large international party? Those parties often require at least Very Good or Excellent.
So start with the end goal and work backwards. The Assessor can make an early estimate of the achievable level. Then use the step-by-step plan to determine which measures you need. Also take the costs and timeline into account: moving from Very Good to Outstanding costs considerably more.
Sources
- BREEAM-NL guideline - thresholds per rating (official scores)
- DGBC - BREEAM-NL (manager)