How much tax do I pay on my salary in the Netherlands?

In 2026, Dutch income tax (Box 1) has three brackets: 35.75% on income up to €38,883 (which includes 27.65% national insurance), 37.56% on income between €38,883 and €78,426, and 49.5% above €78,426. These rates apply to your gross taxable salary before any credits are deducted, and your employer withholds the correct amount automatically through payroll (loonheffing) each pay period, so you do not need to calculate or pay this separately yourself. After the bracket tax is calculated, you also receive tax credits that directly reduce the amount owed: the general tax credit (algemene heffingskorting) of up to €3,115 and the labour tax credit (arbeidskorting) of up to €5,685. Because of these credits, your effective tax rate (the percentage of your gross salary you actually pay) is meaningfully lower than the bracket percentages alone would suggest, especially for incomes below roughly €45,000. Source: belastingdienst.nl, last verified 2026-06-21.

What is the 30% ruling in the Netherlands?

The 30% ruling (expatregeling) allows qualifying international employees recruited from abroad to receive 30% of their gross salary tax-free as reimbursement for extraterritorial costs, such as relocation and the higher cost of living in the Netherlands. To qualify in 2026, your taxable salary must be at least €48,013 per year (or €36,497 for employees under 30 with a master's degree). The ruling is typically granted for a maximum duration tied to your employment and residency history in the Netherlands, and it applies to the salary you earn while the ruling is active, not retroactively. Because 30% of your gross pay is excluded from Box 1 taxation entirely, the ruling significantly reduces your effective tax rate compared to a colleague earning the same gross salary without it. Toggle the 30% ruling on in our calculator to compare your net pay with and without it side by side. Source: belastingdienst.nl, last verified 2026-06-21.

What is vakantiegeld (holiday allowance) in the Netherlands?

Vakantiegeld (holiday allowance) is a mandatory annual payment of at least 8% of your gross annual salary, set out in Dutch labour law and almost always confirmed in your employment contract or collective labour agreement (CAO). Most employers pay it as a single lump sum in May or June, though some spread it across monthly payslips instead — check your contract to see which applies to you. It is taxed separately from your regular monthly salary at the bijzonder tarief (special rate), a flat percentage that depends on your annual income bracket rather than the usual progressive calculation. Because of this special rate, the net amount you actually receive is often noticeably lower than 8% of your gross monthly pay, which surprises many employees the first time they receive it. Our holiday allowance calculator shows the exact net amount you will receive after tax for the 2026 tax year.

What are the Dutch income tax brackets for 2026?

The 2026 Dutch Box 1 tax brackets are: 8.1% income tax (plus 27.65% national insurance = 35.75% combined) on income up to €38,883; 37.56% income tax on income from €38,883 to €78,426; and 49.5% income tax on income above €78,426. The national insurance component (volksverzekeringen: AOW, ANW, WLZ) only applies within the first bracket, which is why the combined rate drops once you cross €38,883 even though the income tax portion itself rises — the national insurance cap applies at €38,883. These are marginal rates, meaning each bracket only taxes the portion of income that falls within it, not your entire salary at the highest rate you reach. For example, someone earning €60,000 pays 35.75% on the first €38,883 and 37.56% only on the remaining €21,117, not 37.56% on the full €60,000. Box 1 covers income from employment and homeownership; it does not cover Box 2 (substantial shareholdings) or Box 3 (savings and investments), which are taxed separately. Source: belastingdienst.nl, last verified 2026-06-21.

How is net salary calculated in the Netherlands?

Dutch net salary = gross salary minus income tax (loonbelasting), minus national insurance contributions (volksverzekeringen: AOW, ANW, WLZ), plus tax credits (heffingskortingen), minus pension contributions, minus Gediff WGA premium. Your employer calculates and withholds all of this automatically through the payroll system each month, so the amount that lands in your bank account is already your net pay — you do not file or pay anything separately for regular salary income. The exact result depends on several personal factors: your gross income level (which bracket and credit phase-out applies), your age (state pension contributions stop at the statutory retirement age), your employment type, whether the 30% ruling applies, and any voluntary deductions such as pension contributions or a lease bike scheme. Two people with the same gross salary can end up with different net pay if one qualifies for the 30% ruling, has a different pension contribution rate, or falls into a different age bracket for social security. Our salary calculator runs this full calculation for your specific situation.

How does the labour tax credit (arbeidskorting) work in 2026?

The labour tax credit (arbeidskorting) in 2026 is up to €5,685 and directly reduces the amount of income tax you owe — it is not a deduction from your taxable income, but a credit applied after the bracket tax is calculated. It phases in gradually from €0 income, reaches its maximum around €45,593, and then phases out for incomes above that level at a rate of 6.51% per euro earned, reaching zero at approximately €132,920. Because both the phase-in and phase-out are gradual rather than a sudden cutoff, your credit changes smoothly as your income changes rather than dropping sharply at any single threshold. The general tax credit (algemene heffingskorting) works the same way: it is up to €3,115 and phases out above €29,736 at 6.398% per euro, reaching zero at €78,426. Both credits are calculated and applied automatically by your employer through payroll, so you do not need to claim them yourself on a tax return. Source: belastingdienst.nl, last verified 2026-06-21.

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We built an app for the inburgering exam

We spend most of our time here on the money side of moving to the Netherlands: what a salary actually nets, what the ruling is worth, what the car costs to keep on the road. But there is a second bill that lands on a lot of newcomers, and it is not paid in euros. It is the inburgeringsexamen. So we built an app for it. Inburgering Exam Preparation is on the App Store now, free to start.

All five exam parts, one app

Kennis van de Nederlandse Maatschappij (KNM), Lezen, Luisteren, Schrijven and Spreken, each with its own practice rounds, instant feedback, and an explanation for every answer rather than a bare right or wrong.

Download on the

App Store

Why a tax calculator is publishing a language app

Because it is the same person on the other end. Whether the inburgeringsplicht applies to you depends on your residence permit, and plenty of people who use our calculators are exactly the ones it lands on, or will land on when a permit changes or a naturalisation application comes into view. The obligation and its deadline come from DUO, not from us, so check your own letter for the date that applies to you. What we can help with is the part between receiving that letter and sitting the exam.

The practical problem with that middle part is not a shortage of material. It is that most of it assumes you have an evening free. Preparing for an exam while working full time, settling into a new country and doing the admin that comes with both is a different problem, and it needs a different shape of tool.

Built around ten minutes, not two hours

The app is organised into short practice rounds you can finish on a train or in a queue, not into chapters. Streaks, hearts and a daily points goal exist for one reason: getting you to come back tomorrow. Progress is tracked per exam part, so when you open it you can see which of the five is lagging and spend the ten minutes there instead of redoing the part you are already comfortable with.

Alongside the exam rounds there are vocabulary flashcards and a match-the-words game, for the days when a full practice round is more than you have in you.

Speaking practice that actually listens

Spreken is the part self-study usually skips, because checking your own pronunciation alone is close to impossible. The app uses speech recognition to check your spoken Dutch answers, so you get feedback instead of a transcript you have to grade yourself.

The recognition runs on your device. Nothing you say is uploaded, and no recordings leave your phone. Listening exercises use real spoken Dutch audio, for the same reason: the exam is not written in a textbook voice.

On-device by default

Speech recognition happens locally on your iPhone or iPad. We never receive your audio, which is also why the feature works without an account.

What it costs

Free to start. Practice is supported by the occasional ad, and there is one optional one-time Premium unlock that removes them. No subscription, and no account needed to begin. It runs on iPhone and iPad on iOS 16.4 or newer.

It is a separate app from our tax calculator app, built by the same team, and the calculators here stay exactly where they are.

Quick answers

What is the inburgeringsexamen?: It is the Dutch civic integration exam, made up of five parts: KNM (knowledge of Dutch society) plus Lezen (reading), Luisteren (listening), Schrijven (writing) and Spreken (speaking). Whether you have to sit it, and by when, depends on your residence permit. DUO is the authority on your personal obligation.
Is the app free?: Yes, free to start with ads. An optional one-time Premium unlock removes the ads. There is no subscription and no account is required to practise.
Does the speaking practice send my voice anywhere?: No. Speech recognition runs on your device, and recordings never leave your phone.
Is there an Android version?: Not yet. This launch is iOS only, on iPhone and iPad running iOS 16.4 or later.
Does the app replace an inburgering course?: No. It is practice material for the exam, not an accredited course, and it is not a substitute for the official DUO exam information or a registered language school.

Ready?

Start practising for the inburgering exam today.

This article reflects Dutch tax rules as of 2026. It is not tax advice, consult a qualified belastingadviseur for your specific situation.

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