The Dutch Tax System, Explained

The Dutch tax system sorts your income into three boxes, and each box has its own rate and its own rules. The Belastingdienst (the Dutch tax authority) puts your income in a box based on where it comes from.

Box 1 covers your work and your home. The rates are progressive and rise to 49.50% on income above €78,426 in 2026. The full bracket table lists each one. Rates and thresholds shown here are the 2026 figures published by the Belastingdienst, consulted on 28 August 2026.

Box 2 covers a substantial shareholding of 5% or more in a company. In 2026 you pay 24.50% up to €68,843, and 31% above that.

Box 3 covers your savings and investments. You pay 36% on a deemed return, a set percentage. In 2026 the first €59,357 per person is tax-free, or €118,714 for fiscal partners combined. Fiscal partnership is a status with its own conditions, and the fiscal partners page tells you whether you meet them. Fiscal partners are usually married or registered partners. The 2026 deemed-return percentages are still provisional and become final early in 2027.

Three things catch people out. Your main home falls in Box 1, not Box 3. A loss in one box cannot be set against income in another. Box 3 starts from a deemed return, but you can report a lower real one.

Your final bill depends on more than the rate. Deductions lower your taxable income. Tax credits lower the tax itself, starting with the general tax credit. Working parents of a young child may also get the income-related combination tax credit. Allowances work differently. They are money paid to you, not a cut in your tax.

Not everyone has to file, but most people who live here or earn Dutch income do. You file once a year, between 1 March and 1 May, for the year before. Every rate, threshold and exception has its own page below.