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Introduction to submitting your Dutch Corporate Income Tax Return
This guide provides you with all the information to submit your (dormant) corporate income tax return, by yourself!
No accountant or tax lawyer is needed in The Netherlands, especially if your Dutch business has hardly performed any operations. Our Guide, comment section, and other Dashboard pages will provide you all information required, to handle these tax formalities yourself.
Submitting your Dutch tax return is easy, but, if your company is part of a complex structure, or deals with complicated transactions, you might want to double check with a tax advisors.
In case your company has made a profit, you need to consider that you need to pay the corporate taxes timely. You will also have to pay interest on the due taxes. To avoid any interests, you can request for a provisional tax assessment, once it’s clear that you expect a taxable profit for a certain book year.
Our tutorial is meant for:
Dormant companies who have not started their Dutch business yet
Trading companies, with few purchase and sales invoices
Active companies, managed by entrepreneurs who have experience with accounting software
For small Trading Companies, or Active companies (that deal with staff, subsidiaries, or other matters) we provide additional Articles that allow you to file the corporate income tax return yourself. In case of doubt, you can call the Tax Hotline (Belastingtelefoon), or use our Comment section.
HouseofCompanies.io does not provide any active support in this process ourselves.
When to submit your Dutch corporate tax return
Is your financial year equal to the calendar year? Then you must submit the declaration before 1 June of the following calendar year. Do you have a broken financial year? In that case, you must submit a declaration within 5 months after the end of the financial year.
How do you check your financial year? Your Dutch Formation Deed mentions this, typically on the final page
When the Formation Deed shows that the first book year will end at 31-12 of the next year, it means that from that point on, your financial book years will always end the 31st of December.
Alternatively you can check your extract of the Chamber of Commerce (KvK).
When you receive an invitation letter from the Tax & Customs Administration, the financial book year is typically also mentioned on it, including the required final filing date.
Shortened financial year
In the case of a short financial year ending on 31 December, your declaration must be submitted on 1 June of the following year. Does your short fiscal year end in another month? Then you must file a declaration before 1 April of the following calendar year.
Online Filing options for your Dutch corporate income tax return
There are two ways to submit your Dutch corporate tax return digitally
In most cases, it’s no longer possible to submit a corporate tax return via a hard copy Form. Only for non resident companies, this is still an option. (For example, when you use a Dutch BV which is not effectively being managed and controlled from the Netherlands).
When you submit your tax return online, you need to consider that:
You are not able add attachments or explanations to the Dutch tax declaration
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Who needs to submit a Dutch corporate tax return?
All Dutch Private and Public Companies must submit a Dutch corporate tax return. A Dutch Foundation, or Assocation, can also be required to file a corporate income tax declaration in certain situations. Government companies are also liable to pay corporate tax. Overseas companies that have registered a branch in the Netherlands, also require to submit a tax return.
In some cases, your Dutch company (incorporated by Dutch Company Law) is not considered a Dutch tax resident (based on Dutch fiscal law).
This can be relevant for the taxability of your ‘Dutch’ taxes, and it might also allow you to submit your corporate tax return via a hard copy form.
Domestic and foreign taxpayers
Entities established in the Netherlands are resident taxpayers. Foreign taxpayers are entities that receive income from the Netherlands, but are established abroad.
Whether a company is established for tax purposes in the Netherlands depends on:
the place where the management is established,
the place of the head office,
the place where the shareholders' meeting takes place.
Bodies incorporated under Dutch law are established in the Netherlands according to the Corporation Tax Act.
National taxpayer: file a digital tax return
If you are a resident taxpayer, you file a digital tax return. This can be done in the following ways:
via the website of the Tax and Customs Administration
with declaration or administration software
via a tax intermediary.
You can read more about this for which taxes do you file a digital declaration?
Foreign taxpayer: declaration on paper or digital
Are you a foreign/non-resident taxpayer? Then you can use the paper declaration form for foreign taxpayers. You can request this from the Tax Information Line for non-residents (Heerlen).
You can also file a digital tax return in the following ways:
with tax or administrative software
via a tax intermediary.
Requesting a postponement to submit your Dutch tax return
You can request a postponement in 2 ways:
Digitally: By logging into your Tax Portal. You will need to activate your account (e-kenning) as described in our Dashboard pages.
Hard Copy Form: You can download and submit the form: Application for deferment of corporate income tax return. This is a pdf. You fill out this form on your computer and then send it by post to your tax office. We will be providing an English translation for this form shortly. In the meantime, your browser might allow a translation option.
You will receive a response from the tax authorities within 3 weeks.
The standard deferral period is 5 months. Would you like to delay longer? Please indicate your reasons on the form.
Checking your (provisional) tax assessment
The provisional assessment (of your profits, and thus expected taxes to be paid) is typically not relevant for companies who are in their first year of business. Unless you already expect to earn a high profit, in that case it can be suggested to apply for a provisional assessment, to avoid high interest charges at the end of the financial book year. Although you are only required to pay your corporate taxes, after an assessment has been issued (for example, after you submitted your tax return, some months after the end of the book year) the Tax & Customs Administration will claim interest, per date of the start of the book year.
Once you receive your provisional assessment (called the: Voorlopige Aanslag) you can check if it’s correct. The amount of this assessment has been calculated based on data from previous years. Check your preliminary assessment. Do you expect a higher or lower taxable profit than is stated on your assessment? Then request a change in your provisional assessment . You can also request a change if you do not agree with your provisional assessment. You cannot object to the preliminary assessment. You can object to the final assessment.
Objecting to the final assessment
Do you disagree with a final assessment or a corporation tax additional assessment? Then object.
One of the first things you check, if if the mentioned taxable amount, corresponds with the turnover and profit that you declared in your tax assessment form.
But before you will receive any tax assessment, the first step is to file your tax return. (In case you would not submit your tax return at all, you will receive an estimated tax assessment, at some stage. You can object against this, by submitting your tax return anyway.)
How to submit your Dutch corporate tax return
Before we discuss the complete tutorial on how to submit your corporate income tax return in The Netherlands, it’s important to understand how to login to your Tax Portal. These methods have changed the last few years.
There have been 2 type of tax Portals:
Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk/My Online Tax Portal (which will be continued). This login must be requested from a Dutch online security company.
Ondernemers (Entrepreneurs) login (which will be terminated). This login is provided automatically by the Dutch tax authorities.
In time, Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk will replace the old portal for entrepreneurs.
You file a declaration in either the old or new portal. However, you can only file a corporate income tax return 2019 and later years and the 2020 and later years payroll tax return in Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk (My Online Tax Portal).
What affairs can you (still) arrange in the Entrepreneurs Login?
VAT return, correction of VAT return (supplementation), ICP declaration, enter or change account number, wage return from tax year 2019, corporate income tax return from tax year 2018, apply for or change provisional assessment of corporate tax from tax year 2020.
What tax affairs can you arrange via ‘Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk’/My Online Tax Portal ?
With ‘Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk’ (My Corporate Tax Portal), the new portal for entrepreneurs, you as an entrepreneur can:
submit a VAT return, correct a VAT return,
declare an intra-Community performance statement (ICP statement),
or enter an account number
or make a payroll tax return for 2019 and later years
file a corporate tax return for 2018 and later years
Etc.
The benefits of My Tax Office Business
My Tax Office Business works better on tablets and smartphones than the old portal for entrepreneurs. In addition, with DigiD and eHerkenning your privacy and safety are better arranged when you do online tax matters.
And if you submit a declaration via Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk, you can always view that declaration again. That is not possible in the old portal. While completing the declaration, correction or declaration, you can temporarily save your data. That is also new.
Logging in to Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk
Legal persons can log in with eHerkenning. In order to purchase an eRecognition tool, you must be registered with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce (KVK).
Are you a self-employed person or do you run a sole proprietorship? Then you can log in with DigiD. Don't have a DigiD yet? Request it via digid.nl/aanvragen. If you cannot (or do not want to) use DigiD, you can also log in with eHerkenning. You also find an article in our Dashboard, on how to obtain e-herkenning.
Would you like to authorize someone for Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk?
You can do this in the following ways:
Authorize with DigiD Authorize
with eRecognition
Frequently asked Questions
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Tutorial: How to submit your Corporate Income Tax Return
This tutorial shows you, in about 15 steps, how you can file your corporate tax return by yourself, within 30 minutes of time! In our Presentation, we have included all screenshots of all steps that you will have to take throughout the filing of your tax return. This presentation is aimed at dormant companies, or trading companies that have been able to calculate their own profit (turnover minus expenses). You don’t necessarily need a Financial Statement, in order to complete this corporate income tax return.
Summary of the Tutorial:
Login to My online Tax Portal
Open the Tax Return from the overview of outstanding tax returns
Complete Company Details
Confirm your Corporate structure
Confirm the Balance Sheet
Confirm your Turnover, Expenses & Profit
Confirm Shareholders Details
Confirm the taxable profit
Submit the tax return and Download the Report
You don’t need a Tax or Accounting Degree to follow these steps! Let’s get started, you can enlarge the presentation below (Branch Office members), which consists of 16 screens. You can also request the Video Presentation, which includes a voice over for each screen.
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