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The term Passive house (Passivhaus in German) refers to the rigorous, voluntary, Passivhaus standard for energy use in buildings. It results in ultra-low energy buildings that require little energy for space heating. A similar standard, MINERGIE-P®, is used in Switzerland. The first Passivhaus buildings were built in Darmstadt, Germany, in 1990, and occupied the following year. In September 1996 the Passivhaus-Institut was founded in Darmstadt to promote and control the standard. Since then more than 6,000 Passivhaus buildings have been constructed in Europe, most of them in Germany and Austria, with others in various contries world-wide.

Despite the name, the standard is not confined only to houses. Several office buildings, schools, kindergartens and a supermarket have also been constructed to the standard. Although it is mostly applied to new buildings, it has also been used for refurbishments.