Dutch VAT return, quarter by quarter: a checklist
Most businesses in the Netherlands file a VAT return every quarter. In Dutch that is the btw-aangifte, and the tax authority is the Belastingdienst. Here are the deadlines, what goes in the return and what to check before you send it.
Deadlines
The return and the payment both have to be received by the last day of the month after the quarter. These are the dates the Belastingdienst lists:
| Quarter | Return and payment received by |
|---|---|
| 1st quarter 2026 | 30 April 2026 |
| 2nd quarter 2026 | 31 July 2026 |
| 3rd quarter 2026 | 31 October 2026 |
| 4th quarter 2026 | 31 January 2027 |
You file in Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk, the online portal for businesses, with eHerkenning or DigiD. You can also file from accounting software or through a tax service provider. From software you can send the return from the 24th of the last month of the quarter. Earlier than that, you get an error.
A late return has a grace period of 7 calendar days. After that, the Belastingdienst gives a penalty of €82. If your return or payment is late, the Belastingdienst can also require you to file every month.
What's in the return
The return is split into boxes, called rubrieken. You fill in amounts excluding VAT and, where asked, the VAT on them. These are the ones you will meet most:
| Rubriek | What goes in it |
|---|---|
| 1a | Sales in the Netherlands at the standard rate of 21% |
| 1b | Sales in the Netherlands at the reduced rate of 9% |
| 1e | Sales at 0%, or sales not taxed with you, such as when the VAT is reverse charged to your customer |
| 2a | Purchases in the Netherlands where the VAT is reverse charged to you |
| 3a | Goods you supply to countries outside the EU |
| 3b | Goods and services you supply to businesses in other EU countries |
| 4a | Goods and services you buy from suppliers outside the EU |
| 4b | Goods and services you buy from suppliers in other EU countries |
| 5a | The VAT you owe, the total of rubrieken 1 to 4 |
| 5b | Input VAT (voorbelasting), the VAT on your business costs that you may deduct |
The result is either an amount to pay or, when your input VAT is higher, a refund.
Reverse charge
With reverse charge (verlegging), your supplier does not charge you VAT. You work out the Dutch VAT yourself and declare it, in 2a for a Dutch supplier, 4a for a supplier outside the EU or 4b for a supplier in another EU country. When you use the purchase for taxed sales, you deduct the same VAT in 5b. It then cancels out, but both lines have to be there.
Watch for software subscriptions and advertising billed from abroad. The invoice shows no VAT, so it is easy to book as an ordinary cost and leave it out of the return.
If you fill in 3b, you also file a separate statement of those sales per customer, the opgaaf intracommunautaire prestaties (ICP). You do that in Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk too.
Checklist before you file
- Every bank transaction in the quarter is booked, with a receipt or invoice behind each one
- Every sales invoice of the quarter is in your package, with the right VAT rate
- Input VAT is only claimed where there is an invoice for it
- Foreign invoices without VAT are in 4a or 4b, and their VAT is in 5b
- Sales to EU businesses are in 3b, with their VAT number, and the ICP statement is ready
- Corrections of earlier quarters are dealt with, see below
- The VAT totals in your package match the figures in the return
- You have the payment reference (betalingskenmerk) for the payment
Small business scheme (KOR)
The kleineondernemersregeling (KOR) is a VAT exemption for small businesses. You can join if your business is established in the Netherlands and your turnover is at most €20,000 per calendar year, both in the year you join and in the year before.
- You do not charge VAT to your customers
- You do not deduct VAT on your costs and investments
- As a rule you no longer file VAT returns, but you do keep your purchase invoices
- You register in Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk, at least 4 weeks before the date you want it to start
- If your turnover goes over €20,000 in a calendar year, you deregister straight away. The sale that takes you over the limit is already taxed.
- You can leave at any time. After leaving, you cannot rejoin for the rest of that year and the year after.
Whether the KOR pays off depends on who your customers are and what you buy for your business. Ask your accountant before you register.
Correcting an earlier return
If you find a mistake in a return you already filed, what you do depends on the size of the difference.
| Difference | What you do |
|---|---|
| Up to €1,000 | Include it in your next return, in the rubriek where it belongs |
| More than €1,000 | Correcting is mandatory. Send the Suppletie btw form in Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk as soon as possible, and within 8 weeks of finding the mistake. |
You can correct a return up to 5 years after the end of the year it is about. If you declared too little and correct it late, or not at all, you risk a penalty.
Paying
The payment has to be in the Belastingdienst's account by the deadline, so allow for the time your bank needs. Always quote the betalingskenmerk, the payment reference for that return. Without it the Belastingdienst cannot match your payment.
If you filed in Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk, you can pay with iDEAL from the link next to your return, which fills in the amount and the reference for you. If you transfer it yourself, copy the account number from the Belastingdienst's payment page. It changed on 1 May 2026, so an old saved payee may be wrong.
What a bookkeeper prepares and what you check
On our Professional and Complete plans we prepare your quarterly VAT return. Because we close every month, the return is three closed months added together. At each close we check that the VAT in our bookings matches the VAT in your package. See monthly close for what we check before we close.
You then look over the return and file it, or your accountant does. Check that your sales are complete, including anything invoiced outside your package, and tell us about anything that was private. Questions such as whether to join the KOR or which country's VAT applies to a sale are tax advice. Those stay with your accountant, as do payroll and annual accounts.
Our prices are €49, €129 or €289 per administration per month, excl. VAT. See prices.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I have to file a return if I had no sales this quarter?
- Yes. The Belastingdienst expects a return for every period, also when there is nothing to declare.
- Can I file the return myself?
- Yes. You log in to Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk with eHerkenning or DigiD and fill it in there. You can also file from accounting software or through a tax service provider.
- Do you file the VAT return for me?
- On Professional and Complete we prepare it. Filing it is up to you or your accountant.