Money and compliance after the registration
Expat tax advisor in the Netherlands for your first tax year as a founder
A first-year plan for your business, then your year-of-arrival return and a BV's own return, filed under your authorisation.
- Sole trader, freelancer or first BV
- Income tax return usually due 1 May, 1 July living abroad
- Authorised through DigiD Machtigen, so it works from abroad
The first Dutch tax year starts with letters and logins.
Expat tax advice for a founder's first Dutch tax year
We prepare the tax side of a founder's first Dutch year, for newcomers and founders from abroad who start as a sole trader (eenmanszaak), a freelancer (zzp'er) or with a first BV, from the residence question to the first final assessment. The government portal business.gov.nl itself recommends that a founder starting from abroad ask "advice from a tax intermediary".
The work runs by authorisation, and your city does not change it: the return, form M and the provisional assessment follow one national procedure. A business account is a separate service: see our business bank account overview.
What's included
Our expat tax services, in the order a first Dutch tax year needs them.
Your residence and taxpayer status
Resident from the day you live in the Netherlands, or non-resident with Dutch income (art. 2.1 Wet IB 2001). For EU, EEA or Swiss residents, the qualifying non-resident test too.
Your return, filed under your authorisation
The year-of-arrival return, online or on paper form M (plus the M annual report for an entrepreneur), or the non-resident return, online or on form C. You stay responsible for it.
Representation before the Belastingdienst
Anyone may represent a taxpayer; the Belastingdienst may ask for a written authorisation (art. 2:1 Awb). Objections to a final assessment included, within six weeks (art. 6:7 Awb).
VAT, prepared from your books
VAT is part of your returns, but the quarterly return is prepared from your books on our bookkeeping service, which covers the bookkeeping a new Dutch business must keep.
What is not included
A client who takes tax advice, tax returns or representation from NetherStart Partners does not take our registered office or virtual office address, and the other way round; the enquiry form asks which one you want. Also excluded: US returns, registering an eenmanszaak, legal advice or litigation, any promised outcome.
Who this service is for
Four situations, each with its own returns and dates.
- You arrived and started as a sole trader or freelancer
Two tax tasks: the year-of-arrival return, and a first-year plan that begins after your own KVK registration.
- You run the business from another country
Dutch income, including the profit of a permanent establishment in the Netherlands, goes on the non-resident return; on paper it is form C.
- You have a first BV
Two taxpayers, two calendars: the BV files corporate income tax, you file income tax, and your salary, at least the customary amount, sits between them.
- You are an American founder
We handle the Dutch side. The IRS taxes US citizens on worldwide income, and the 1992 treaty's saving clause keeps that right; your US preparer files the US return. Help with applying for DAFT is a separate service.
How the process works
Enquiry and identification
The form asks whether you want our address instead; the two are never combined. We then identify you, and a BV's directors and beneficial owners (Wwft art. 3). No statutory period.
Residence and status
One review of where you live, judged on the circumstances, and of the qualifying non-resident test where it applies. No official time.
Registration and logins
The KVK passes your eenmanszaak to the Belastingdienst; a BV's notary does the same, and a letter follows by post within 2 weeks. You authorise us through DigiD Machtigen.
First-year estimate
A provisional assessment on request, paid monthly; a request received before the first day of the fifth month after the tax period avoids tax interest (art. 30f AWR).
The year itself
You keep the hour log and records; at year end we check the 1,225-hour test and the starter's conditions. No official time.
Your return
Online from 1 March, usually due 1 May, before 1 July if you live abroad (business.gov.nl, checked on 8 October 2026). A first message usually within 3 months; the final assessment within 3 years.
If there is a BV
Its return before 1 June, or 1 November with the online extension; your own return carries at least the customary salary.
Final assessment
Object within six weeks (art. 6:7 Awb); a provisional assessment is revised on request instead.
- Enquiry and identificationNo statutory period
- Residence and statusNo official time is published
- Registration and loginsA new BV's letter: by post within 2 weeks
- First-year estimateRequest received before the first day of the fifth month after the tax period (art. 30f AWR)
- The year itselfChecked at year end
- Your returnOnline from 1 March; usually due 1 May, before 1 July if you live abroad Message usually within 3 months; final assessment within 3 years
- If there is a BVReturn before 1 June; 1 November with the online extension
- Final assessmentObjection within six weeks (art. 6:7 Awb)
Not sure which return your first year needs?
Tell us when you arrived, your legal form and where you live. We reply with the returns and dates the rules set for you.
Documents and logins you will need
Have these ready; two items are our practice, not an official list.
- Passport or ID; for a BV, the IDs of its directors and beneficial owners
- BSN and DigiD, a DigiD from abroad or a European login (our guide: getting a BSN as a newcomer)
- Your date of arrival and municipal registration (our practice: residence turns on the facts)
- KVK extract; for a BV, the deed of incorporation and eHerkenning
- Invoices, bank statements and the hour log for the year
- Income from your home country before arrival (our practice, not a legal rule)
- Qualifying non-residents: the home tax authority's income statement, if the inspector asks
- A written authorisation, if the Belastingdienst asks for one
Dutch deadlines, filings and sanctions by legal form
Fines below are statutory maxima in the 2026 AWR text; the official pages we read state no filing fee.
The Dutch income tax return opens online.
The US return is due; the FBAR is generally due.
American founders onlyThe Dutch return is usually due. A provisional assessment request received before this date avoids tax interest.
A BV's corporate income tax return is due before this date, or the online extension is requested.
The US return is due after its automatic extension for those residing overseas.
American founders onlyThe return of a person living abroad is due before this date.
A BV's return is due with the online extension.
Calendar year assumed; your return letter controls where it differs. Standard fines: Besluit bestuurlijke boeten Belastingdienst, paragraph 21. BV return date: business.gov.nl; online extension: Belastingdienst.
| Obligation | Sole trader or freelancer | Founder with a BV | Deadline or rule | If it is missed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Income tax return | Yes: the profit (box 1), after the deductions the hour test opens | Yes, you personally: the salary and any dividend (box 2) | Online from 1 March, usually 1 May; 1 July living abroad; year of arrival online or on form M | Fine up to EUR 6,709 (art. 67a AWR); standard fine 7 percent of that maximum, only after a term and an unanswered reminder |
| Corporate income tax return | Not applicable: a BV files it, not a person | The BV files its own, every year | Before 1 June; online extension to 1 November, requested before 1 June | Fine up to EUR 6,709 (art. 67a AWR); standard fine 50 percent of that maximum, only after a term and an unanswered reminder |
| Provisional assessment | On request in the first year (art. 13 lid 4 AWR); monthly instalments | - | Request received before the first day of the fifth month after the tax period | Tax interest on an assessment set more than 6 months after the period (art. 30f AWR) |
| Hour log | Keep it: the 1,225-hour test (art. 3.6 Wet IB 2001) behind the deductions | Not applicable | Checked at year end | The self-employed deduction and the starter's increase do not apply |
| VAT return | Filed as an entrepreneur for VAT; prepared on our bookkeeping service | The same, for the BV | By period | Fine up to EUR 165 (art. 67b AWR) |
| Wage tax return | Only with an employee | Once the BV pays a salary, the founder's included | By period | Fine up to EUR 1,675 for a missing, late, wrong or incomplete return (art. 67b AWR) |
| Authorisation | DigiD Machtigen, with your own DigiD | eHerkenning, or a tax service provider files | Before the return | - |
| Objection to a final assessment | Six weeks (art. 6:7 Awb) | Six weeks | A provisional assessment is revised on request instead (art. 9.5 Wet IB 2001) | The assessment stands |
Problems we solve
- "I arrived in the middle of the year"
Residence turns on the circumstances; the statute names no day count (art. 4 AWR). The year of arrival has its own return, online or on form M; we establish your status first.
- "A tax bill and interest after my first year"
You can ask for a provisional assessment, paid monthly; the statute sets the date before which a request avoids tax interest. We explain it and file the request you decide on.
- "My BV has no login yet"
A BV logs in with eHerkenning, bought from a private supplier for a fee; the Belastingdienst says it is not needed where a tax service provider files the return.
- "Nobody mentioned a salary"
A BV founder with a substantial interest takes a salary of at least the highest of three amounts, the third EUR 58,000 in 2026 (art. 12a Wet LB 1964), lower only where the BV makes plausible that comparable employment pays less. The wage tax return follows: see hiring the first employee of a Dutch business.
- "How long until I know where I stand?"
Usually a message within 3 months of filing; officially 3 years, so the final 2025 assessment by 31 December 2028 at the latest (Belastingdienst, checked on 8 October 2026). No faster answer is promised.
Want your filing dates and logins in place before the first deadline?
Send us your arrival date and legal form. We map your filing dates and the logins each return needs.
Why work with us
Noor Bakker, Tax, bookkeeping and payroll lead, Amsterdam. Dutch and English; nine years on the first-year tax of Dutch starters.
From our practice: we first check which route your year-of-arrival return takes, online or form M, and whether a provisional assessment request can still arrive before the date art. 30f lid 4 AWR sets.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a tax adviser cost?
NetherStart Partners publishes no fee for tax advice: pricing is given on request after a first review. The state charges nothing for filing a return on the official pages we read. A missing or late income tax or corporate income tax return can cost a fine of up to EUR 6,709 (art. 67a AWR).
Do I need a tax adviser at all, or is the Belastingdienst's free help enough?
The Belastingdienst's channels explain the rules and the forms, but none of them files the return, plans the first year or represents the taxpayer. For a founder starting from abroad, business.gov.nl itself recommends asking a tax intermediary, because many factors decide which taxes are due. Which route suits you is a conversation.
Is there free tax advice in the Netherlands, and how can I get tax advice?
The Belastingdienst runs the Head Start live chat for starters, offers appointments for a migration-year or non-resident return, and answers on the Tax Information Line: 0800 0543, free of charge from the Netherlands, or +31 555 385 385 from abroad, Monday to Thursday 8 am to 8 pm and Friday 8 am to 5 pm.
If an adviser files my return, who is responsible for it?
You are. The Belastingdienst states that the taxpayer always remains responsible for the return, also when a tax service provider files it. An individual authorises the adviser through DigiD Machtigen with their own DigiD, and the Belastingdienst may ask for a written authorisation (art. 2:1 lid 3 Awb).
I arrive in the middle of the year. Do I pay Dutch tax that year, and which return do I file?
A person who lives in the Netherlands is a resident taxpayer, and where someone lives is judged on the circumstances (art. 4 AWR); the statute names no day count. A person living abroad with Dutch income is a non-resident taxpayer. The year of arrival has its own return, filed online or on paper form M.
What is the M form, and what does an entrepreneur add to it?
Form M, M for migration, is the paper tax return for the year of immigration or emigration; the same return can be filed online in Mijn Belastingdienst. An entrepreneur who files form M on paper must also complete the M annual report, a booklet requested from the Belastingdienst's information line for non-resident tax issues.
How long does the Belastingdienst take to settle my first-year return?
On a migration-year return the Belastingdienst usually sends a message within 3 months of filing. Officially it has 3 years: the final assessment for 2025 comes no later than 31 December 2028, and a postponement of the filing date is added to those 3 years. We cannot shorten that period.
I run my business from abroad. Do I still file in the Netherlands?
Yes, on Dutch income, as a non-resident taxpayer, including the profit of a permanent establishment in the Netherlands. A return is due when the Belastingdienst writes, or without a letter when the tax due exceeds the assessment limit, EUR 57 for 2025 in its non-resident table. On paper it is form C.
How do I avoid a big tax bill and tax interest after my first year?
A taxpayer can ask for a provisional assessment (art. 13 lid 4 AWR), paid in monthly instalments. No tax interest is charged where it follows a request received before the first day of the fifth month after the tax period: for a calendar year, 1 May of the following year (art. 30f lid 4 AWR).
Does my BV file separately from me, and what salary do I take?
Yes. A BV files its own corporate income tax return, before 1 June for a calendar financial year, and the founder files a personal return. A founder with a substantial interest has a customary salary of at least the highest of three amounts, the third being EUR 58,000 in 2026 (art. 12a Wet LB 1964).
Is a tax advisor the same as an accountant?
No. Under art. 41 of the Wab the titles RA and AA and the designation accountant are reserved to people in the accountants' register, while tax adviser is not a reserved title. NetherStart Partners claims none of the reserved titles and works as a tax adviser; pricing for its tax work is given on request.
How do I know a tax adviser is legitimate, and what should I ask them?
No licence exists to check, because anyone may represent a taxpayer (art. 2:1 Awb). An independent tax adviser falls under the Wwft, must identify the client before the work and is supervised by the Bureau Financieel Toezicht. Ask how they handle the first-year return, the hour log, the provisional assessment and any US filing.
Can I use the 30 percent ruling as a freelancer, and what is the 30% rule in Amsterdam?
The 30 percent ruling is a scheme of the Belastingdienst, not a rule of the city, and it can be applied for only by someone in paid employment by their employer. A sole trader or freelancer working for their own account therefore cannot use it. Our guide on the ruling for founders explains who qualifies.
I am American. Do I file in both countries?
The IRS taxes US citizens on worldwide income, and the saving clause in art. 24 lid 1 of the 1992 US-Netherlands convention keeps that right. The US return is due 15 April, automatically extended to 15 June for those residing overseas; the FBAR is generally due 15 April. We do not prepare US returns.
Do the Dutch pay 75 percent income tax?
No. The 2026 table in art. 2.10 of the Wet IB 2001 has no 75 percent rate: below state pension age the top rate on income from work and home is 49.50 percent, on taxable income above EUR 78,426. Income from a substantial interest (box 2) is taxed at its own rates.
Ready to map your first Dutch tax year?
Tell us where your first Dutch tax year stands. We reply with what it needs, in order.