Tax rebates
A tax rebate is a reimbursement of taxes paid or owed to the government. A number of expenses you incurred as a tax payer qualify as a tax rebate. You can get it refunded by the Dutch tax office. To obtain a refund you are required to file your income tax return in the tax year in which you incurred the expense. In this section you'll find types of expense sources eligible for a tax refund.
How to obtain a tax rebate?
A tax rebate is provided to you as a refund of income taxes paid. Therefore, you have to be a tax payer in the Netherlands to obtain a refund. Tax refundable expenses are returned to you as an offset against taxes paid. The tax rebate should be claimed in the tax year in which you incurred the refundable expense, irrespective of the amount of an income earned in that year. For example, if you incurred educational expenses in 2018, you report these in an income tax return filing for 2018.
Tax rebates and no income
You can still claim a tax rebate if you have no or a very low income for a while. Since you obtain the rebate as a reimbursement on income taxes paid, it may quite well be that your tax refundable expense amount exceed the amount of taxes you have paid. This then would result in a so-called negative income tax return; you have more to claim from the tax office than what you paid in taxes to the tax office. This 'negative' income tax amount is neither paid nor lost on you! You can carry it forward as a tax credit to offset it against taxes you pay then. This you can do so for the next 9 years.
Tax refundable expenses
The following expenses you incur as an individual tax payer qualify as tax rebate.
Child Tax Rebate
The child tax rebate (Inkomensafhankelijke Combinatiekorting) can be obtained for a child younger than 12 years. The child tax rebate is income dependant and is maximal € 2,534 for an annual income of € 27,350 and higher (2022). Conditions apply. Read more...
Study Cost Tax Rebate
From 2022 and on, study costs are no longer qualified for tax rebate.
Expenses related to study or education aimed at improving your professional skills or position on the labor market are tax refundable. Costs you make for study material such as books, tuition fee and lecture fee are tax refundable. Tax refundable expenses have to be filed for the same tax year as when it was incurred. Conditions apply. Read more...
Mortgage Tax Rebate
If your are an owner-occupant of a property in the Netherlands, you can get part of the financing costs refunded. Interest charges of your mortgage, cost for obtaining a mortgage and ground leases are tax refundable. Conditions apply. Read more...
Commuting Cost Tax Rebate
Public transport expenses for your home and work commute are tax refundable under conditions and provided that you are not reimbursed by your employer. Conditions apply. Read more...
Non-working Spouse Tax Rebate
The non-working spouse rebate is a refund you can obtain if your fiscal partner has little or no income. If your fiscal partner has no income, he or she will also not pay income tax. Consequently, he or she cannot apply to the generic tax levy of € 2,888 (2022). If you have an income and reside for more than 6 months in the Netherlands, you instead can obtain this levy. Conditions apply. Read more...
Broken Year Tax Rebate
The broken year rebate is a refund of taxes withheld in excess by your employer. This excess amount is withhold from your salary by your employer if you were not working for the full tax year in the Netherlands. If you arrived (or left) in the middle of the year in (or from) the Netherlands you overpaid in taxes. The excess amount can be retrieved through an income tax return filing for that specific year. Conditions apply. Read more...
Caring Tax Rebate
If you incurred expenses for a medical condition or disability you may apply for the Caring Tax rebate (aftrek zorgkosten). Expenses that are already reimbursed to you or expenses that are covered by your insurance are not eligible for the caring tax rebate. Conditions apply. Read more...
Need help with filing your income tax return to obtain your tax rebate?