Which tax return form do you need in the Netherlands?
The Belastingdienst uses four income tax return forms.¹ Which one is yours depends on where you were living that year. The Belastingdienst is the Dutch tax authority.
The four forms are the P-form, the M-form, the C-form and the F-form. P, M and C follow your living situation, and the F-form follows a death. You do not choose freely. Your situation decides which form applies. Business profit does not add a form. Report it on the same form your living situation gives you.
This page helps you spot your form and file the right one. It is not a walkthrough of the return itself. Our page on the Dutch tax return explains how we handle it from start to finish. To place this in the wider picture, start at the Dutch tax system hub.
Take Mateo. He moved to Amsterdam in September for a new job and filed nothing in the Netherlands before. He knows a return is coming, but not which form is his. We follow him through this page. You are a Dutch resident where your home and daily life are. Not where you are registered.
In short
Four forms, P, M, C and F. They are one income tax return. P, M and C depend on where you lived. F follows a death.
P-form for a resident the whole year. This is the standard return most people here file.
M-form for the year you moved to or left the Netherlands. You lived here for only part of it.
C-form for a non-resident with Dutch income. You lived abroad all year but earned or owned something here.
F-form for someone who has died. The next of kin files this final return.
Mostly online. You file in Mijn Belastingdienst or the app. The M-form can also be filed online, except for 2022 and earlier.
Filing usually opens on 1 March. Your deadline is in the letter the Belastingdienst sends you, often before 1 May. For 2025 the online M-form opens on 1 May 2026.
Which form fits which situation?
Your residency during the year decides your form. Where you lived, and whether that changed, points straight to one of the four.
You file the P-form if you were a resident for the whole tax year. It is the standard return, so most people here use it. Our full P-form guide walks through it line by line.
You file the M-form if you arrived in or left the Netherlands that year. The M stands for migration, and it covers the year you were here for only part of the time. The M-form guide has the detail.
You file the C-form if you lived abroad all year but still had Dutch income. That income could be a rented-out home, a Dutch pension or a Dutch employer. The C-form guide covers non-resident returns.
You file the F-form for someone who has died during the year. It is the final return, and the Belastingdienst sends it to the next of kin. Our F-form guide explains that step by step.
The table below sets the four side by side.
| Form | Who files it | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| P-form | A resident for the whole tax year | You were a Dutch resident for all 12 months |
| M-form | Someone who moved to or left the Netherlands | Your residency here started or ended during that year |
| C-form | A non-resident with Dutch income | You were not a Dutch resident on any day, but had Dutch income |
| F-form | The next of kin, for someone who has died | The person died during that tax year |
How do you file your form?
You file online in Mijn Belastingdienst, in the tax app, or on paper.¹ Online is the standard route, and entrepreneurs have to file online. You cannot download a paper form, so you order it from the Belastingdienst by phone.
You can file the M-form online in Mijn Belastingdienst.² The online M-form for 2025 opens on 1 May 2026. Years up to 2022 stay on paper. If you live abroad and file the C-form, you can do that online too. You log in with your DigiD or a European recognised login.² DigiD is your Dutch digital ID for logging in to government services.
Mateo arrived in September, so he was a resident for only part of the year. That makes his return the M-form, which he can now file online. His next step is our M-form guide, where we take it from there. The table below shows the route for each form. You need a DigiD to file online, and we help you if you have none.
| Form | Filing route | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| P-form | Mijn Belastingdienst, the app, or paper | Paper forms cannot be downloaded, you order them by phone |
| M-form | Mijn Belastingdienst, or paper | Online for recent years, 2022 and earlier stay paper |
| C-form | Filed via Mijn Belastingdienst, or on paper | Log in with DigiD or a European recognised login |
| F-form | Also filed through Mijn Belastingdienst or paper | The next of kin files it for the person who died |
“Almost everyone asks the same thing first, which form is mine. Once we know when you arrived, when you left, or whether you live abroad, the form is obvious. We pick it and file it, so you never post the wrong one.”
What if your situation is less common?
Some situations point to one form even when your year looks ordinary. Living or income across the border is the usual reason.
Did you live abroad all year but keep a rented-out home, a Dutch pension or a Dutch employer? Then your return is the C-form for as long as that lasts. Where a foreign element or worldwide income comes in, we check the worldwide income return with you too.
When someone dies, their final return is the F-form. The Belastingdienst sends it to the next of kin, and there is no rush to work it out alone. We handle it calmly and at your pace.
So check two things. Where did you live that year? Has the taxpayer died? Those two answers decide your form. Unsure which of the four is yours? We confirm it and file it with you. Mateo files the M-form, and we file it with him.
¹ belastingdienst.nl, Aangifte inkomstenbelasting doen (online, app or paper) · Accessed
² belastingdienst.nl, Aangifte doen over het jaar van emigratie of immigratie (M-aangifte) · Accessed