Tax for Freelancers (ZZP) in Netherlands 2026

In short: as a freelancer (ZZP) in the Netherlands you deal with two taxes. You charge BTW (VAT) on most invoices and file BTW returns, usually per quarter. Once a year you pay income tax (inkomstenbelasting) on your profit, where the zelfstandigenaftrek, the startersaftrek and the MKB-winstvrijstelling can lower your taxable profit. This guide covers the 2026 rules and amounts, with a worked example.

If you have just registered your business, you may also want to read our guides on registering as a ZZP freelancer in the Netherlands and how to register at the KvK as an expat.

💡 Looking for a complete banking comparison? Read Best banking for expats in the Netherlands 2026 — covers ABN, ING, Bunq, Wise, Revolut & 5 others by expat use case.

The Two Tax Systems You Are Dealing With

As a freelancer in the Netherlands, you operate within two separate but connected tax systems:

1. BTW (belasting toegevoegde waarde) — Dutch VAT, which you charge on most of your invoices and pay to the Belastingdienst, usually per quarter
2. IB (inkomstenbelasting) — Income tax on your profit, filed annually

As a sole trader (eenmanszaak), you are responsible for both. Let us go through them in order.

Part 1: BTW — Dutch VAT for Freelancers

What Is BTW and Who Must Charge It?

BTW is the Dutch equivalent of VAT. The general rate is 21%. A reduced rate of 9% applies to some goods and services, including food. Some goods and services are exempt from BTW, and when you do business abroad the 0% rate can apply (Belastingdienst).

When you register your eenmanszaak, KVK passes your registration on to the Belastingdienst, which decides whether you are an entrepreneur for BTW. If you are, you receive a BTW identification number (btw-id) usually within two weeks of registering with KVK, by letter or in Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk (KVK).

Adding BTW to Your Invoices

Once you have your BTW number, your invoices must meet the Dutch invoice requirements (factuurvereisten). According to the Belastingdienst, an invoice must include:

• Your full name and that of your client
• Your full address and that of your client
• Your BTW identification number (format: NL, 9 digits, the letter B and 2 more digits, for example NL123456789B01)
• Your KvK number
• The invoice date
• An invoice number (consecutive numbers, in one or more series; each number used only once)
• A description of the services and their scope (or the goods and quantity)
• The date of supply, or of an advance payment
• The amount excluding BTW
• The BTW rate that applies
• The BTW amount

When the BTW is reverse-charged, you also state “btw verlegd” and the client’s BTW number. If the invoice amount is €100 or less including BTW, fewer details are required.

The BTW Return (Aangifte Omzetbelasting)

You can file BTW returns per month, per quarter or per year. After you register, the Belastingdienst sends you a letter that states your filing period. Most entrepreneurs file per quarter, and you can ask the Belastingdienst to let you file per month or per year instead. You must also file a return for a period in which you charged no BTW (a nil return) (Belastingdienst).

2026 Quarterly BTW Deadlines

Both the return and the payment must be in by these dates (Belastingdienst). Filing on time does not protect you from a fine for paying late; see the penalties below.

How to File Your BTW Return

You file in Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk, where you log in with eHerkenning or DigiD. You can also file with bookkeeping software or have a tax adviser file for you (Belastingdienst). If you do not have DigiD yet, see our DigiD guide for expats.

In the return you report:

• Your turnover per BTW rate (the amount on which BTW is charged, so excluding BTW)
• The BTW you charged to clients
• The BTW you paid on your own business purchases (voorbelasting — the BTW you can deduct)
• The balance: BTW to pay or, if you deducted more than you charged, a refund

Example: In Q1 you invoiced €10,000 excluding BTW, so you charged your clients €12,100 in total (€10,000 + 21% BTW = €2,100 BTW). During Q1 you also bought a new laptop for €1,210 including BTW (€1,000 + €210 BTW). Your return would show: BTW charged €2,100 minus BTW paid €210 = €1,890 to pay to the Belastingdienst.

In other words, you collect BTW on behalf of the government and pass it on, minus the BTW you paid on your business purchases.

What Happens If You File or Pay Late?

There is a grace period of 7 calendar days after the deadline, for filing and for paying. If your return arrives later, or not at all, the fine is €82. If you pay after the grace period, the fine is 3% of the amount paid late, with a minimum of €50 and a maximum of €6,709; paying late within the grace period only leads to this fine if you also paid your previous return late or not in full (Belastingdienst). If you do not file, the Belastingdienst estimates the BTW you owe and sends you an additional assessment (naheffingsaanslag), plus the fines. You can then get 2 fines: one for filing late and one for paying late (Belastingdienst).

Put the deadlines in your calendar. The Belastingdienst also has an app, Btw-Alert, that reminds you when your BTW return is due.

The KOR: Opting Out of BTW If Turnover Is €20,000 or Less

You can use the KOR (kleineondernemersregeling), the small business scheme, if your business is established in the Netherlands and your turnover is no more than €20,000 per calendar year, both in the year you sign up and in the year before (Belastingdienst). Under the KOR:

• You do not charge BTW and do not show BTW on your invoices
• You no longer file BTW returns, except in a few cases
• You cannot deduct BTW on your business costs and investments either

You sign up for the KOR in Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk once you have your BTW number (KVK). You can deregister voluntarily at any time; the deregistration then takes effect on the 1st day of the next quarter. After deregistering, you cannot rejoin for the rest of that calendar year and the year after (Belastingdienst).

Important caveats: if your turnover goes above €20,000 in a calendar year, you must deregister straight away, and the deregistration takes effect immediately (Belastingdienst). The KOR is also less attractive if you buy equipment with BTW you would want to deduct, or if your clients are businesses that can deduct the BTW you charge them.

BTW on EU and International Invoices

For most services to a business client in another EU country, the service is taxed in the client’s country. You invoice without BTW, write “btw verlegd” (VAT reverse-charged) and the client’s BTW number on the invoice, and report the service in your BTW return and in your ICP declaration (opgaaf intracommunautaire prestaties). For services to a business client outside the EU, you do not report the service in your BTW return if it is taxed in that country (Belastingdienst). The Belastingdienst has an online tool that shows where your service is taxed. If you regularly invoice abroad, consider having an accountant check your set-up in the first year.

Part 2: IB — Income Tax on Your Profit

While BTW is about collecting and passing on a tax on your turnover, income tax (inkomstenbelasting or IB) is a tax on your profit. As a sole trader, your business profit is part of your personal income in Box 1 of the Dutch income tax system.

For a full explanation of how Box 1, Box 2, and Box 3 work, see our guide to the Dutch tax system for expats. Here we focus on the rules and deductions that apply to freelancers.

How Your Taxable Profit Is Calculated

The starting point is your profit: turnover minus your business expenses (zakelijke kosten). From there, several deductions can reduce your taxable income further:

1. Zelfstandigenaftrek — deducted from profit if you meet the urencriterium
2. Startersaftrek — an increase of the zelfstandigenaftrek for starters who qualify
3. MKB-winstvrijstelling — 12.7% of the profit after these deductions is exempt in 2026

The result counts towards your belastbaar inkomen uit werk en woning (taxable income from work and home ownership), which is taxed at the Box 1 rates.

The 2026 Box 1 Tax Brackets

If you have not reached state pension age (AOW-leeftijd) in 2026, these rates apply (Belastingdienst):

The rate of the first bracket includes the national insurance contributions (premie volksverzekeringen), such as the AOW premium (Belastingdienst). Tax credits (heffingskortingen) then lower the tax you pay. In 2026 the general tax credit (algemene heffingskorting) is at most €3,115 and the labour tax credit (arbeidskorting) at most €5,685; both decrease at higher incomes (Belastingdienst, provisional assessment 2026).

The Urencriterium: The 1,225 Hours Rule

The zelfstandigenaftrek and the startersaftrek require you to meet the urencriterium. According to the Belastingdienst, you usually meet it if:

• you spend at least 1,225 hours in the calendar year on your business; and
• you spend more time on your business than on other work, such as a job. This second condition does not apply if you were not an entrepreneur in 1 of the 5 previous years.

1,225 hours is about 24.5 hours a week over 50 weeks. All hours you spend on your business count, not only the hours you invoice: writing quotes, keeping your administration or building your business website also count. Hours in which you are only available, without working, do not count.

You must be able to make your hours plausible, for example with your calendar, quotes, timesheets and invoices (Belastingdienst). Keep a time log from day one. If the Belastingdienst later finds that a tax assessment was too low, it can usually send an additional assessment (navorderingsaanslag) within 5 years after the end of the tax year (Belastingdienst).

Zelfstandigenaftrek: The Self-Employed Deduction

The zelfstandigenaftrek is a fixed deduction of €1,200 in 2026. It is deducted from your business profit.

Conditions (Belastingdienst):

• You are an entrepreneur for income tax (ondernemer voor de inkomstenbelasting), not someone with a hobby or occasional income
• You meet the urencriterium (1,225 hours)

If you had reached state pension age (AOW-leeftijd) at the start of the year, the zelfstandigenaftrek is 50%: €600 in 2026. The deduction cannot be higher than your profit before entrepreneur deductions, unless you qualify for the startersaftrek. Unused zelfstandigenaftrek can be carried forward to the next 9 years.

In 2026 the tax benefit of the zelfstandigenaftrek is calculated at a maximum rate of 37.56% (Belastingdienst).

Important: the deduction is being reduced each year. It was €2,470 in 2025, is €1,200 in 2026 and drops to €900 in 2027 (Ondernemersplein). Check the Belastingdienst amounts for each tax year rather than carrying the 2026 amount into later projections.

Startersaftrek: The Starter Bonus

If you qualify, the startersaftrek increases the zelfstandigenaftrek by €2,123 in 2026. Combined, that is €3,323 in 2026.

The rules (Belastingdienst):

• You meet the conditions for the zelfstandigenaftrek, including the urencriterium
• You were not an entrepreneur in 1 or more of the 5 previous calendar years
• You applied the zelfstandigenaftrek no more than twice in those 5 years

In practice, that means you can use the startersaftrek up to three times in your first five years as an entrepreneur. Like the zelfstandigenaftrek, its tax benefit is calculated at a maximum rate of 37.56% in 2026, so €2,123 saves you at most about €797 in income tax.

For 2027 the cabinet has proposed lowering the startersaftrek to €10 and abolishing it from 1 January 2028 (Belastingplan 2027, not yet adopted).

MKB-Winstvrijstelling: The 12.7% Profit Exemption

You get the MKB-winstvrijstelling if you are an entrepreneur for income tax; the urencriterium is not a condition. In 2026 it exempts 12.7% of your profit after the entrepreneur deductions such as the zelfstandigenaftrek and startersaftrek. If your business makes a loss, the exemption reduces the loss. In 2026 its tax benefit is also calculated at a maximum rate of 37.56% (Belastingdienst).

It is part of the calculation of your profit in your annual income tax return.

Part 3: Zakelijke Kosten — What Can You Deduct?

Before you apply the deductions above, you reduce your profit by your zakelijke kosten: the costs you make for your business. Some costs are fully deductible, some only partly, and some not at all. The Belastingdienst publishes an overview.

Common Business Expenses for ZZP Freelancers

Equipment and tools: Laptop, second monitor, camera, recording equipment, specialist tools. If an item costs less than €450, you deduct it in one go. More expensive equipment that you use for several years is depreciated: you spread the cost over its expected useful life, at most 20% of the purchase cost per year. If you can deduct the BTW, you use the price excluding BTW (Belastingdienst).

Software and subscriptions: accounting software, cloud storage, project management tools and other software you use for your business.

Workspace at home: costs for a workspace in your own home are not deductible, with some exceptions. The Belastingdienst has an online tool to check whether your situation is one of the exceptions.

Travel and transport: if you use your own car (one that does not belong to the business) for business trips, you deduct a fixed €0.25 per business kilometre in 2026 (2025: €0.23). Business travel by public transport, taxi or plane is deductible at the actual cost; keep your tickets or an OV-chipkaart travel overview (Belastingdienst).

Professional development: study costs are deductible if you make them for your business to keep your existing professional knowledge up to date. Costs to acquire new knowledge are not deductible. Professional literature is deductible (Belastingdienst).

Marketing and website: website hosting, domain name, logo design, advertising, business cards.

Professional services: accountant fees, bookkeeper fees, legal advice related to your business.

Insurance: business insurance such as liability insurance is a business cost. A disability insurance (arbeidsongeschiktheidsverzekering, AOV) is different: premiums for an AOV with periodic payments are not business costs. You may be able to deduct them in your income tax return as an “expense for other income provisions”; the payments are then taxed. Premiums for an AOV that pays a lump sum are not deductible (Belastingdienst).

Phone: business calls are deductible; a home phone subscription is not (Belastingdienst).

Pension: premiums for a lijfrente (a third-pillar annuity product) can be deductible in your income tax return if you have a pension shortfall. Your jaarruimte and reserveringsruimte determine the maximum (Belastingdienst). This is a personal deduction, not a business cost.

Limited or Not Deductible

• Food, drink and representation: business meals, drinks, receptions and similar costs are only partly deductible. As an entrepreneur for income tax, you either deduct 80% of these costs or everything above €5,700 (Belastingdienst)
• Clothing: ordinary clothing is not deductible, even if you only wear it for work; work clothing is (Belastingdienst)
• Personal care and fines are not deductible (Belastingdienst)

Part 4: The Voorlopige Aanslag — Paying Tax During the Year

As a freelancer, nobody withholds income tax from your earnings the way an employer does. With a voorlopige aanslag (provisional assessment), you can pay income tax during the year instead.

A voorlopige aanslag is an estimate of the income tax you will pay or get back for a year. You can pay the amount in one go, within 1 month of the date on the assessment, or in monthly instalments: up to 11 for the current year, with the last payment in before the end of the year. When you file your annual return, the Belastingdienst settles the amounts of your voorlopige aanslag (Belastingdienst).

The Belastingdienst can also send you a voorlopige aanslag without a request, if it expects you to owe a large amount (Belastingdienst).

Why This Matters Practically

If you do not have a voorlopige aanslag, or it is set too low, you pay the rest after you file your annual return. You may also pay belastingrente (tax interest). For income tax, the Belastingdienst normally charges it from 1 July of the year after the tax year if your return arrives on or after 1 May, or if it has to change the figures in your return. In 2026 the belastingrente rate is 5% (Belastingdienst).

If your voorlopige aanslag turns out too high, you get money back after your annual return.

How to Request or Adjust a Voorlopige Aanslag

Log in to Mijn Belastingdienst (your personal tax portal, not Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk). There you can request a voorlopige aanslag or change one that no longer fits your situation, for example when your expected profit goes up or down (Belastingdienst).

The Zvw Contribution

On top of income tax, entrepreneurs pay the income-related healthcare contribution (bijdrage Zvw) through a separate assessment (aanslag Zvw). In 2026 it is 4.85% of your income, up to a maximum income of €79,409 (Belastingdienst). You can also change a voorlopige aanslag Zvw in Mijn Belastingdienst.

Part 5: The Annual IB Return (Aangifte Inkomstenbelasting)

Your annual income tax return covers the previous calendar year. Your return must be in before the date in the letter you receive from the Belastingdienst; usually this is 1 May. If you need more time, you can request an extension (uitstel) in Mijn Belastingdienst before 1 May; for the 2025 return, a request before 1 May 2026 gave an extension to 1 September 2026. With an extension you usually do pay belastingrente (Belastingdienst).

For a step-by-step walkthrough of how to file your Dutch tax return, see our how to file guide.

What Freelancers Need to Include in Their Return

In the section “Winst uit onderneming” (profit from business), you work from your turnover to your taxable profit:

1. Your total turnover
2. Your business expenses (zakelijke kosten)
3. Your profit
4. Zelfstandigenaftrek (if eligible)
5. Startersaftrek (if applicable)
6. MKB-winstvrijstelling (12.7% of the profit after the deductions)
7. Final taxable profit

The online return is pre-filled with data the Belastingdienst receives from others, such as wages, bank balances and the WOZ value of your home (Belastingdienst). Your business turnover and expenses come from your own administration, which is why good records throughout the year matter.

Records You Must Keep

You must keep your administration for 7 years; data on real estate must be kept for 10 years (Belastingdienst). This includes:

• All invoices issued to clients
• All receipts and invoices for business purchases
• Bank statements for your business account
• Your bookkeeping records
• Any contracts with clients or suppliers

Keep digital copies, organised by year and month.

Part 6: A Worked Example — Freelance Designer Earning €60,000

To make this concrete: suppose you are an expat freelance graphic designer in Amsterdam, in your second year of business, and you meet the conditions for the startersaftrek. In 2026 you invoice €60,000 excluding BTW to Dutch clients. The costs and BTW on purchases below are example figures.

BTW for the Year

You pay this across four quarterly returns. The €12,600 you collected from clients is not yours: you pay it to the Belastingdienst, minus the BTW you deducted on purchases.

Income Tax for the Year

This example calculates taxable business profit only. Your actual Box 1 bill depends on your total income, tax credits and personal circumstances, so combine the figure with any salary or other Box 1 income before estimating tax. You also pay the Zvw contribution (4.85% in 2026) through a separate assessment.

Note on social security: no employer pays you when you are ill, so you arrange income cover yourself. A disability insurance (AOV) is not compulsory. If you become self-employed straight from a job or a benefit, UWV offers a voluntary Ziektewet or WIA insurance; you must apply within 13 weeks (UWV). You build up 2% of the AOW state pension for each year you are insured for the AOW (SVB).

Part 7: Penalties for Late Filing and Non-Compliance

The Belastingdienst can impose fines if you file or pay late, or if your return is wrong.

BTW Penalties

• Late filing: €82 if your return arrives more than 7 calendar days after the deadline, or not at all
• Late payment: 3% of the amount paid late, with a minimum of €50 and a maximum of €6,709, if you pay after the 7-day grace period (or within it, when you also paid your previous return late)
• No return: the Belastingdienst estimates the BTW you owe and sends an additional assessment (naheffingsaanslag), with the fines
• Interest: on late payments and additional assessments you can also pay belastingrente, 5% in 2026 (Belastingdienst)

IB (Income Tax) Penalties

• Late filing: €469 if you do not file, or do not file within the term in the reminder (aanmaning) you receive, rising to €6,709 if you fail to file more often
• No return: the Belastingdienst imposes an assessment anyway (ambtshalve aanslag), based on an estimate of your income, plus a fine for not filing
• Late payment of an assessment: 5% of the outstanding amount, with a minimum of €50 and a maximum of €6,709
• Wrong return on purpose or through gross negligence: a vergrijpboete of 50% (intent) or 25% (gross negligence) of the tax you did not declare, up to 100% in case of fraud; higher percentages apply to box 3 income (Belastingdienst)

If you have already filed a wrong or incomplete return, you can avoid a vergrijpboete by correcting it in time (Belastingdienst).

If you cannot pay on time, contact the Belastingdienst before the deadline. Note that for entrepreneurs, a deferral of payment is normally only granted if you can provide security for the whole tax debt, such as a bank guarantee (Belastingdienst).

Part 8: Practical Setup — Tools and Processes

Accounting Software

Dutch bookkeeping packages include:

• Moneybird — connects to your business bank account and prepares your BTW return from your bookkeeping (Moneybird)
• e-Boekhouden.nl — prepares your BTW return automatically and offers automatic bank connections (e-Boekhouden.nl)
• SnelStart — offers a business account (SnelStart Bankieren) inside the bookkeeping package (SnelStart)
• Exact Online — imports bank transactions and prepares BTW and ICP returns for digital filing (Exact)

All four offer a free trial; check each provider’s own price list before you choose.

Business Bank Account

Keep your business and personal finances separate: it makes your bookkeeping and BTW returns easier to check. If you invoice clients in other currencies, Wise Business is one option. According to Wise, registering is free and account details to receive money in 22 currencies cost a one-time €60. Conversion fees start at 0.2% depending on the currency, and Wise uses the mid-market rate (Wise, 31 October 2026).

Open a Wise Business account →

DigiD and BSN

To file your income tax return online and log in to Mijn Belastingdienst you need DigiD, and for DigiD you need a BSN. If you are still sorting these out, the DigiD guide for expats walks you through the process step by step.

When to Hire an Accountant

In your first year of self-employment in the Netherlands, consider having a bookkeeper or accountant who knows expat taxation check your set-up and your first return. Ask for a quote in advance. Multiple income sources, international clients, home ownership and cross-border tax questions are all reasons to get professional help.

Part 9: Special Situations for Expat Freelancers

If You Previously Had the 30% Ruling

The 30% ruling (Expat Scheme) is only available if you are in paid employment, have specific expertise and were recruited from outside the Netherlands (Belastingdienst). It does not apply to profit from your own eenmanszaak. If you move from a job with the 30% ruling to freelancing, check with your employer or an adviser what happens to your ruling, and do not count on it for your freelance income.

Part-Year Self-Employment

If you start freelancing during the year, you still need at least 1,225 hours in that calendar year to meet the urencriterium. You cannot scale the hours down to the period you were an entrepreneur. The Belastingdienst’s example: if you start on 1 July, you must spend at least 1,225 hours on your business in those 6 months. Keep your hours log carefully from the start.

Working as a Freelancer Alongside Employment

Some expats start freelancing alongside a salaried job. In this case:

• Your freelance profit is added to your employment income in Box 1
• For the zelfstandigenaftrek you need at least 1,225 hours in your business, and you must spend more time on your business than on your job, unless you were not an entrepreneur in 1 of the 5 previous years
• Your employer withholds wage tax (loonheffing) from your salary; tax on your freelance profit is settled through your annual IB return
• A voorlopige aanslag for your freelance profit helps you avoid a large amount to pay after your annual return

Summary: Your Freelancer Tax Checklist for 2026

On registration:

• Register at KvK; KVK passes your details to the Belastingdienst for BTW
• Open a separate business bank account
• Set up accounting software with a bank connection
• Apply for DigiD if you do not have one
• Start a time-tracking log for the urencriterium
• Request a voorlopige aanslag once you have a sense of your expected profit

Each quarter (if you file per quarter):

• Reconcile your business bank account
• Record all income and business expenses in your accounting software
• File your BTW return and pay any BTW due:
  • Q1: by 30 April
  • Q2: by 31 July
  • Q3: by 31 October
  • Q4: by 31 January

During the year:

• Change your voorlopige aanslag when your expected profit changes

By the date in your letter (usually 1 May):

• File your annual IB return (aangifte inkomstenbelasting), or request an extension in time
• Apply zelfstandigenaftrek, startersaftrek (if applicable), and MKB-winstvrijstelling
• Pay any remaining income tax due

Ongoing:

• Keep your administration for 7 years
• Track your hours to support the urencriterium

Before You File

Get the basics in place: a separate business account, consistent record-keeping, and an hours log for the urencriterium. The zelfstandigenaftrek, startersaftrek and MKB-winstvrijstelling change from year to year, so check the Belastingdienst figures and conditions for the tax year you are filing.

For more on the broader Dutch tax system for expats, including Box 2 and Box 3, see the Dutch tax system guide. For a walkthrough of filing your annual return, see the Dutch tax return step-by-step guide.