Your Dutch tax return
We file your return and review every credit and deduction, so your figures are right before an allowance runs on them.
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Health insurance, rent, childcare, children: the Dutch government helps with each through a monthly allowance. Here is how they work, who qualifies and where to go next.
Dutch tax system
A toeslag is a monthly allowance from the Dutch government toward a specific cost. It helps with health insurance or rent. It also helps with childcare or the cost of raising children. It is not a tax deduction. Dienst Toeslagen pays it monthly and in advance. That service is part of the Belastingdienst. The amount is based on the income you expect to earn. Once the year is over it settles the final amount.
Four allowances exist. Healthcare allowance runs to a maximum of €129 a month for one person. With a toeslagpartner the maximum is €246 a month. That is the partner whose income counts alongside yours. Rent allowance, childcare allowance and the child budget each help with their own cost.
Most allowances have a capital limit, and the limits are not the same. Healthcare allowance and the child budget allow savings and investments up to €146,011. With a toeslagpartner that limit is €184,633. Rent allowance is far stricter. Its capital limit is €38,479 on your own and €76,958 with a toeslagpartner. Childcare allowance has no capital limit at all. The Belastingdienst measures your capital on 1 January. So your position on New Year's Day decides the whole year. Assets abroad count too.
2026 moved several rules. Rent allowance lost its maximum rent ceiling, so a higher rent can still qualify. Service costs no longer count toward the rent. The youth age limit dropped from 23 to 21. See the rent allowance page for what this age limit decides. Childcare allowance also covers a larger share of your costs in 2026. If an allowance was out of reach before, it is worth another look.
You qualify if you live in the Netherlands and are registered with your municipality. Your registration date decides when you can claim. Deregistering ends it. Both the income and the capital of your toeslagpartner count.
The four allowances
Each allowance covers a different cost. Health insurance and rent are the two most people miss. Childcare and children's costs add up fast for families. Start with the one that matches your bill.
Shared rules
Your income, your partner and your capital decide what you get. Your capital is measured on 1 January, your income over the whole year. Capital counts for three of the four allowances, never for childcare allowance. Get one of them wrong and Dienst Toeslagen reclaims the money later. That is where most surprises come from. These are the rules the four allowances share.
Get help
We look at whether you qualify and whether your full situation is set up right. Toeslagen run on the same income and capital picture as your tax return. So one conversation usually covers both. Your toeslagpartner can be someone other than your tax partner. We do not file the application for you, but we make sure the numbers behind it are correct. You apply for each allowance yourself at Dienst Toeslagen with your DigiD. DigiD is the national login you get after registering with your municipality. Pick the help that fits your question.
We file your return and review every credit and deduction, so your figures are right before an allowance runs on them.
The Belastingdienst has an online calculation (proefberekening) for every allowance. It gives an estimate from your own figures.
A monthly contribution toward your Dutch health insurance premium. Most single people on a modest income qualify.
Help with your rent when your income and your capital are not too high.
A share of your daycare or after-school costs, back each month.
An extra amount on top of child benefit (kinderbijslag), for the cost of raising children. It depends on your income and your capital.
Your allowance runs on your estimated income. Report a change and you avoid a bill at the end of the year.
Some capital can be left out of the test in special situations. This explains when the exception applies.
Three of the four allowances set a capital limit for your savings and investments. Childcare allowance sets none.
A toeslagpartner is not always the same person as your tax partner. The difference changes what you get.
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Updated 3 August 2026
“Most people assume they earn too much to get anything. Often they do not. The rules moved in 2026, and a lot of households qualify now who did not before. We work out your real position before you apply.”
Menno van der Made
Tax advisor
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