Tax partner
If you are living together and married with someone or are registered partners, you might meet the requirements for (mandatory) tax partnership in the Netherlands.
Having a tax partner may affect your Dutch income tax position in terms of the amount of tax you owe or the size of your tax refund. You may be able to choose whether or not you are fiscal partners, which might be to your tax advantage. Tax partnership affects other taxes such as gift or inheritance tax and means you file a joint income tax return.
Always tax partners
You are always tax partners if you both live at the same address (in the Netherlands) and are married or have a registered partnership together. This is not optional anymore. If you don’t meet these requirements, then there are more things needed to elect someone as your tax partner.
If there are more people registered at the same address but you are not married or registered partners, it may be possible to elect a tax partner and several of them could be eligible.
Other scenarios
Conditions for tax partnership with a housemate
If you live at the same address you may meet the requirements if you:
- were tax partners in the previous year;
- have a notarial (civil) partnership to live together;
- have a child together, or have acknowledged one of the other person's children;
- are registered as pension fund partners;
- own a house (primary dwelling) together;
- have a child under 18 living at the same address.
You can only be tax partners if your housemate is not someone else's tax partner. If you are divorced and you have rented your house (primary dwelling) to your ex-partner, or the other way around, this may affect your partnership status so you should let us know.
M-form
Sometimes it may be to your advantage to opt to be considered tax partners for the whole year. This may be the case with emigration or immigration (when you live for part of the year outside the Netherlands). It is then only possible to have a tax partner if you both adopt Dutch tax residency.
Living together with your child
You can only be tax partners if you are both at least 27 years old (on December 31 of the previous tax year).
Guidance
The information on these pages is designed to guide you through the dilemma of tax partnership but please ask us for assistance if you have more questions.
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