Knowledge base

Guides for freelancers

Practical guidance on invoicing, tax, your rate and your pension in the Netherlands. No jargon, just answers. Written by the makers of Finq.

Invoices & getting paid

Peppol and e-invoicing: what freelancers and small businesses need to knowBelgium already requires it, the Netherlands is heading for 2030. E-invoicing via Peppol is coming for everyone with business clients. What an e-invoice actually is, how the Peppol network works, when it becomes mandatory for you, and what you can sort out now so there is nothing to do later. 7 min read Getting paid from abroad as a freelancer: Wise, PayPal, Stripe and bank transfersYour client is in Berlin, London or San Francisco and the money has to reach the Netherlands. Every channel has its own fees, its own exchange rate and its own way of landing in your books. What a plain bank transfer, Wise, PayPal and Stripe cost, what your client needs on the invoice, and how to book it all without distorting your revenue. 9 min read PayPal in your bookkeeping: fees, dollars and your bank statementClients who pay through PayPal are convenient, right up until you do your books. The money lands on a balance that is not your bank account, fees come off that you never see, and the withdrawal to your bank looks a lot like revenue. Here is how to fit PayPal into your administration without counting your revenue twice. 6 min read Invoicing in dollars, pounds or francs: VAT, exchange rates and your booksAn American client wants to pay in dollars, a British one thinks in pounds. That is fine: your invoice does not have to be in euros. One amount does have to be, and your administration stays in euros either way. Which rate to use, what must be on the invoice, and what to do when slightly more or less comes in than you invoiced. 6 min read The G-rekening (blocked account) for construction freelancersIf you subcontract for a larger construction company in the Netherlands, sooner or later a client will ask you to use a "G-rekening". Here is what this blocked bank account is, when you actually need one and how to show it on your invoice. 5 min read How to invoice in English as a Dutch freelancerA foreign client expects an invoice they can read: "vervaldatum" and "btw verlegd" mean nothing to a British or German customer. But an English invoice is more than translated text: dates and numbers need to switch notation too, or your client will read 01-08-2026 as January 8 and € 1.500 as one and a half euros. Here is what changes, and what does not. 5 min read Writing a quote as a freelancer: what to include (with example)A good quote wins the job and prevents hassle later. Yet many freelancers hesitate about what exactly to include, and above all: when they are bound once the client emails "agreed". This is what belongs in it, section by section, plus the legal side (validity, non-binding or binding) and how to turn an accepted quote into an invoice with one click. 7 min read Credit invoice: when and how (with example)A wrong amount, a cancelled job or a discount after the fact: sometimes you have to reverse an invoice. You do that not by deleting the old one, but with a credit invoice. Here is how to set it right. 4 min read Invoicing without VAT: when is a VAT-free invoice allowed?Sometimes you put no VAT on your invoice, but the reason why determines what exactly you must state. "No VAT" can be the small business scheme, an exempt service, reverse-charged VAT or the zero rate. Here is how to know which applies. 4 min read Invoicing abroad: reverse-charged VAT explainedA client in Germany or outside the EU? Then you usually charge no Dutch VAT, but that does not mean there is nothing to do. Here is how to invoice abroad correctly, with VAT reverse-charged and the right filings. 5 min read Payment reminder and demand letter: sample texts and termsThe payment term has passed and the money is not there. Annoying, but usually just forgetfulness. A polite reminder and, if needed, a formal demand almost always gets you paid. Below are three sample letters you can copy as they are: a friendly first reminder, a firmer second one, and a final demand that holds up legally. 6 min read Charging travel costs to your client: how to do itIf you drive to a client for a job, you often want those kilometres reimbursed. But what do you charge, and how do you put it neatly on the invoice, with or without VAT? Here is how to bill travel costs without hassle. 4 min read How long must you keep invoices? The retention obligation explainedYou cannot just clean out your administration: the Tax Administration can audit years back. How long you must keep invoices and receipts, what exactly is covered, and how to handle it smartly. 4 min read Unpaid invoice? How to get your money after allSooner or later it happens to every freelancer: the payment term passes and the money is not there. Usually it is sloppiness, sometimes unwillingness. The same approach works for both: start friendly, get more formal step by step, and know your rights. This is the full playbook, from the first reminder to the subdistrict court, including the statutory interest and collection costs you may charge. 8 min read Dutch invoice requirements: what must be on your invoice?The Dutch Tax Administration has clear requirements for what an invoice must contain. Miss something and it can mean a fine for you and lost VAT deduction for your client. Fortunately the list is manageable. Here are all requirements as a check-off table, plus the simplified invoice, special cases like reverse-charged VAT and the KOR, and the mistakes that most often go wrong in practice. 7 min read Recurring invoices: billing subscriptions as a freelancerDo you work with fixed monthly amounts, a service contract or a retainer? Then typing out the same invoice every month is a waste of your time. With recurring invoices you automate it. Here is how it works and what to watch for. 4 min read

Tax & deductions

Double taxation and tax treaties: freelancing in the Netherlands with clients or income abroadIf you live in the Netherlands, you declare your world income here: the rent from your flat in Lisbon, the dividend from your American broker, and the salary you earned back home in January. That does not mean you pay twice on everything. What a tax treaty actually does, how the relief for double taxation works in your Dutch return, and when to stop guessing and hire an adviser. 8 min read Dutch tax terms explained for freelancers: from btw to zelfstandigenaftrekThe Dutch tax office speaks Dutch, including to people who do not. The good news is that the vocabulary is short: about thirty words carry you through your first years of freelancing here. This is that list, with what each term means, why it matters to you, and where to find it in Finq. 10 min read The 30% ruling and freelancing: why sole traders don't qualify (and when a BV does)For many expats the 30% ruling is what makes the Netherlands financially attractive. But it only applies to employees. What that means if you want to freelance, and when the BV route becomes worth it. 5 min read The M-form: your Dutch tax return for the year you movedFor the year in which you immigrated or emigrated you do not file a regular return but an M-return. Freelancers add their business profit to it. How it works, and why it often ends in a refund. 4 min read How much tax do you pay as a freelancer in the Netherlands?As a freelancer in the Netherlands, invoices come in gross: no employer withholds tax for you. So the money in your account is not all yours. How much goes to the tax authority depends on your profit, your deductions and VAT. Here is how it works, and how much to set aside. 5 min read Company car or private car as a freelancer in the NetherlandsPut the car in the business or keep it private? One of the most asked questions among Dutch freelancers, and it really is a calculation: business means deducting costs but paying "bijtelling", private means a fixed allowance per business kilometre. Here is the trade-off. 6 min read Reverse-charged VAT for construction subcontractors in the NetherlandsSubcontractors in Dutch construction usually invoice without VAT: the VAT is "reverse charged" to the main contractor. It is a mandatory scheme, and it works differently from the reverse charge for foreign clients. Here is how to invoice and report it correctly. 6 min read The Dutch VAT exemption for healthcare: when it applies and when it does notHealthcare is VAT-exempt in the Netherlands, right? Usually, but not always. Freelance care workers who also coach, train or write reports quickly end up with a mixed practice: partly exempt, partly taxed. Here is where the line runs. 6 min read Year-end closing for freelancers: the December checklistDecember is the busiest month to also sort out your records, and yet this is the moment. A few hours before New Year's Eve saves you days of searching when you file in spring. Here is the checklist, from invoices to odometer reading. 5 min read Provisional tax assessment: paying Dutch income tax in instalmentsAs a freelancer nobody withholds tax for you: the assessment on your profit arrives afterwards, in one go. A provisional assessment (voorlopige aanslag) turns that around, letting you pay in monthly instalments. It prevents a big bill later and, more importantly, tax interest. Here is how it works. 4 min read Dutch income tax return for freelancers: from revenue to assessmentYou file a VAT return every quarter, but once a year the real one arrives: income tax on your profit. That is where the bulk of your tax burden sits, and most of your deductions too. Here is how the calculation runs from your revenue to what you actually pay. 6 min read The hours criterion: the 1,225-hour rule for the self-employed deductionThe self-employed deduction and the starter deduction together quickly add up to thousands of euros in tax benefit. The key condition: the hours criterion. You must spend at least 1,225 hours per year on your business. Here is how it works, and how to substantiate it. 5 min read Tax deductions for freelancers in 2026As a freelancer you pay tax on your profit, but not on all of it: a stack of deductions lowers your taxable income first. Knowing them easily saves thousands of euros per year. This is the full 2026 list: the entrepreneur deductions first, then your business costs per category, with the conditions and pitfalls. 8 min read Deductible business expenses: what counts and what does notEvery euro of business costs lowers your profit, and therefore your tax. Yet many freelancers leave deductions on the table, or deduct things that are not allowed. The main rule is simple: costs are deductible when you incur them for your business. The details are stricter. 4 min read Mileage log requirements of the Dutch Tax AdministrationA mileage log matters for two groups of freelancers: those who claim business kilometres with a private car, and those who want to avoid the private use addition on a company car. In both cases the Tax Administration does not accept estimates, only records that add up. 4 min read The KOR: when is the small business scheme smart?If your revenue stays under € 20,000 per year, you can opt for the Dutch small business scheme (KOR): no more VAT on your invoices and no VAT returns. Sounds like a pure win, but it often is not: you also lose your input VAT, and joining or leaving has consequences for years. Here is how to weigh it, with a worked example. 7 min read Filing your Dutch VAT return as a freelancer, step by stepFiling a VAT return every quarter is part of freelancing in the Netherlands. The good news: with a tidy administration, the return itself is mostly copying numbers. This is the full walkthrough: every box explained with one worked example, the deadlines, cash versus invoice accounting, and the mistakes to avoid. 8 min read

Rate & pension

Jaarruimte: tax-friendly pension saving for Dutch freelancersAs a freelancer in the Netherlands you have no employer pension, but the tax office does help: whatever you contribute within your "jaarruimte" (annual margin) is deductible from your income. That saves tax right away. Here is how it works in 2026. 5 min read Pension as a freelancer: your optionsAs a freelancer in the Netherlands you do not build up a pension anywhere automatically. Not a disaster, but something to arrange yourself, and the earlier you start, the less it costs per month. This guide puts the options side by side honestly, explains the jaarruimte deduction and calculates what it actually saves you. Including the pitfalls providers prefer not to mention. 8 min read How to calculate your hourly rate as a freelancerMany freelancers set their hourly rate by gut feeling, or by copying a colleague. There is a better way: work backwards from the net income you want to the rate that supports it. That way you know you are not quietly working below minimum wage. This guide walks through the calculation step by step, with a worked example, broad rate indications per field and tips for raising your rate. 7 min read

Starting & running a business

The Dutch Self-Employed Act (Zelfstandigenwet): what changes for freelancers from 2028On 1 October 2026 the Dutch government opened a public consultation on the Self-Employed Act. Pass two tests and it is settled in advance that you are not an employee. What those tests ask, what is still unknown, what applies until 2028 and what you can do today. Note up front: this explains a bill, it is not legal advice. 6 min read The Wtta: what the new Dutch labour-supply act means for your BV from 2027From 1 January 2027 you need admission if you supply workers to another business, and from 2028 businesses may only hire in workers from admitted suppliers. That reaches further than temp agencies. What the Wtta is, when your BV falls under it, including as a director who seconds themselves, and what to arrange before 2027. Note up front: this is a general explanation, not legal advice. 6 min read Leaving the Netherlands as a freelancer: closing your business the right wayYou are going home, or on to the next country. Closing your Dutch business is not one button but a sequence: final invoices, deregistering with KVK, a final VAT return, deregistering at the municipality, health insurance, and one more tax return the year after. What to do when, and what still applies once you have gone. 9 min read DAFT: freelancing in the Netherlands as an American under the Dutch-American Friendship TreatyThe Dutch-American Friendship Treaty gives US citizens the most accessible route into self-employed work in the Netherlands: no points system, but a Chamber of Commerce registration and capital in your own business. What the treaty is, the conditions the IND sets, what it costs, what it does not allow, and the tax side once you are here. 7 min read Which Dutch banks accept internationals, and which exports Finq can readYou just registered with KVK, or you are still waiting for your BSN, and you need a business account. Not every bank takes a non-Dutch passport with the same ease, and not every account gives you an IBAN that starts with NL. What the banks ask for, what an LT or BE IBAN means in practice, and which bank exports Finq can read. 9 min read Sole trader or BV: at what profit does switching pay off in 2026?"Once you make six figures, you need a BV." You hear that rule of thumb everywhere. In 2026 it is closer to the truth than many calculations suggest. We ran the numbers using this year's rates, including the often forgotten deduction rate adjustment: where the break-even point actually sits, why you see much higher figures elsewhere, and which four factors can shift your personal break-even point by tens of thousands of euros. Note upfront: this is a worked example for orientation, not tax advice. 13 min read Visas and residence permits for freelancing in the Netherlands: DAFT, orientation year, partner permitsFor EU citizens it is simple: no permit needed. For everyone else, your residence permit decides whether you may work self-employed. The routes at a glance, from partner permits to DAFT. 5 min read Health insurance for freelancers in the Netherlands: what to arrange (and what it costs)No employer means arranging your own health insurance and paying the income-dependent contribution yourself. What is mandatory, what it costs, and where the healthcare benefit comes in. 4 min read Freelancing in the Netherlands without speaking DutchCan you run a business here without speaking Dutch? Yes, but not every institution cooperates. What works in English, where you will meet Dutch anyway, and the vocabulary list that makes the blue envelopes readable. 5 min read What is a zzp'er? The Dutch word for freelancer, explainedZzp'er, freelancer, zelfstandige: in the Netherlands the words are used interchangeably. What the abbreviation means, what a zzp'er legally is (and is not), and what comes with the title. 4 min read How to register as a freelancer in the Netherlands: a guide for internationalsIf you did not grow up in the Netherlands, a few things come before the KvK appointment: your right to work, a BSN, DigiD. Here is the order that works, with the pitfalls internationals hit most often. 6 min read Freelancing alongside a job in the NetherlandsA job plus your own business on the side: for many starters the safest route into freelancing. Your salary keeps coming while you build clients and turnover. Tax-wise it works slightly differently than full-time freelancing: some benefits you miss, others fully apply. 5 min read Getting an AGB code as a freelance healthcare worker in the NetherlandsFreelancing in Dutch healthcare, you will quickly be asked for your "AGB code". Insurers, institutions and staffing agencies all rely on it. The good news: applying is free and done online. Here is what it is and how to get one. 5 min read Setting up your records as a freelancer in the NetherlandsThe Dutch tax authority does not prescribe which program or folder you use; it prescribes what has to be in it and how long you keep it. That list is shorter than most starters think. Here is the minimum, a routine that sticks, and the point where a tool pays for itself. 5 min read VAT id, KVK number and ob-nummer: what is the difference?Shortly after registering a business in the Netherlands you receive three numbers that look alike but serve different purposes. Two go on everything you publish; one you share with no one except the tax authority. Here is the difference in one table. 3 min read Registering with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce (KVK) as a freelancerRegistering with the KVK is the official start of your business in the Netherlands, and it is less daunting than it sounds: well prepared, you are through it in half an hour. Here is what to decide beforehand, how the appointment works, and what happens next. 5 min read False self-employment and the DBA Act: where you stand in 2026For years the Dutch tax authority barely looked at whether a freelancer was really an employee. Since 1 January 2025 that has changed: the enforcement moratorium on the DBA Act has been lifted and checks are back. Here is what false self-employment is, how enforcement looks in 2026 and what you can do. Note up front: this is a general explanation, not legal advice. 6 min read A business bank account as a freelancer: required or not?Do you need a business bank account as a freelancer? Legally not, if you have a sole proprietorship. Still, a separate account is almost always a good idea. The rules, the pros and cons, and what to watch for. 4 min read

Software & switching

Bookkeeping in Excel as a freelancer: a fine start, with three pitfallsCan you do your Dutch bookkeeping in Excel? Yes, simply. The tax authority requires verifiable records, not a particular program, and for many starters a spreadsheet is a fine beginning. But three things go wrong in practice, and all three are foreseeable. 5 min read e-Boekhouden alternatives for freelancers: 7 options comparede-Boekhouden.nl is one of the most widely used accounting packages in the Netherlands, with a long track record and a sharp price. It still does not suit everyone: it is built as a full accounting system, and you notice that when all you want is to invoice. What it does well, where it pinches for freelancers, and seven alternatives with their real price. 6 min read Switching accounting software: how to do it without losing your recordsSwitching feels like a job that will cost you a weekend, and it does not have to. The sting is not in moving the data but in three details: the moment you pick, your invoice numbering, and the seven-year retention rule on what you leave behind. 6 min read Moneybird alternatives for freelancers: 7 options comparedMoneybird is one of the best-known accounting packages in the Netherlands, and a solid choice for many businesses. Just not for everyone: if you only send invoices, or you have just grown past a plan limit, you pay a lot for it. Here is what Moneybird does well, why freelancers still look elsewhere, and seven alternatives with their real price and their weak spot. 6 min read

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