This guide concerns a store business established in the Netherlands. Tax treatment depends on what you supply, where goods originate, the customer and the destination. Document each sales route before copying tax settings from another business.
Registration and VAT use separate assessments
KVK assesses Business Register registration. The Tax Administration separately assesses VAT entrepreneurship, which can also exist alongside employment. Registration does not automatically make every sale taxable. Check your assessment, exemptions, special schemes and any VAT returns actually issued to you.
Rates, zero rating and exemption
The general Dutch rate is 21%; specified goods or services may qualify for 9% or another treatment. Zero rating is taxation at 0% and can preserve deduction rights. Exemption generally prevents deduction of directly related input VAT. A foreign destination does not automatically mean a zero rate. Check the rate category.
Calculate from a consumer price
Consumer prices include applicable VAT. Illustration at 21%: €30 including VAT divided by 1.21 is approximately €24.79 revenue excluding VAT, leaving €5.21 VAT. Apply a consistent accounting rounding method. Revenue excluding VAT is not profit: purchasing, labour and other expenses still have to be deducted.
Follow your filing obligations
The Tax Administration determines your filing period. Follow its notice and the return in Mijn Belastingdienst Zakelijk, including periods without sales. Reconcile payments, sales, credit notes and VAT due. A bank balance is not a reliable estimate of the tax you owe.
Assess KOR deliberately
The Dutch KOR has conditions including establishment in the Netherlands and no more than €20,000 relevant turnover in both the application year and preceding calendar year. Turnover calculation has exceptions. Participants charge no VAT and generally cannot deduct input VAT. Check commencement and any occasional filing obligations.
Deductions have conditions
Take one purchase invoice and mark the supplier, invoice date, VAT amount and business use. Record which taxable, exempt or private activity the purchase serves. Discuss mixed use with your accountant using that allocation; VAT shown on an invoice is not automatically the amount you may deduct.
Map international routes before selling
Separate sales to EU consumers, EU businesses, exports and imports. For each route, check taxation location, evidence and registration. OSS can be relevant for certain EU distance sales; its threshold has conditions and is not a universal exemption. Assess foreign stock and dropshipping separately.
Keep product and country records
For your Dutch business, keep a VAT worksheet for each product group and sales route. Retain the basis for the treatment chosen and one checked example order. Record which revenue and VAT a discount or refund corrects. Update it when products, destinations or the tax scheme change.
Frequently asked questions
Is KOR always beneficial? No; compare customer type, investments and non-deductible VAT. Is VAT entrepreneurship the same as entrepreneurship for income tax? No. Should a platform decide your tax rates? No; you must supply correct tax assumptions and check the output.
Create a verification sheet
Record establishment, product groups, customer types, destinations and special schemes. Present unresolved questions with a sample order to the Tax Administration or your accountant. Use the launch plan to organise the remaining sales processes.
Sources and checks
Primary sources checked on 26 October 2026: Tax Administration: VAT entrepreneurship · Tax Administration: KOR conditions · KVK: registration criteria
