factuurmaken

For expats in the Netherlands

Invoicing in the Netherlands as an expat: from KVK number to first invoice

The registration was the easy part. Now a client wants an invoice, in English, and it has to satisfy a Dutch tax office you have never dealt with. This page is the short version of the rules, with the guides behind it.

Create your invoice See pricing

Partial invoices for deposits

A deposit first, the balance on completion? With a subscription, you can split a quote into partial invoices, for example 30% upfront and 70% on completion. This lets you buy materials or reserve time without funding the entire job yourself.

Set the split and invoice dates in your quote. Once it is accepted, you can have instalment invoices created and sent automatically on those dates. Each partial invoice counts as a separate invoice towards your plan limit.

The rules in five lines

  1. Every invoice carries your KVK number and your VAT identification number (btw-id, the one starting with NL and ending in B01 or higher), plus a sequential invoice number, the date, your client’s name and address, a description, and the VAT per rate. The full list is in the checklist.
  2. VAT is 21% on most services, 9% on a short list (food, books, some repairs) and 0% or “reverse charged” in specific cases. You add it on top of your price and pay it to the tax office every quarter.
  3. Small turnover can opt out of VAT through the KOR scheme, but then your invoices carry no VAT at all and you cannot reclaim VAT on your costs. See the KOR guide.
  4. Business clients in other EU countries get a reverse-charged invoice: no Dutch VAT, their VAT number on the invoice, and a mention in your quarterly ICP return. Clients outside the EU usually get no VAT at all. Read invoicing abroad.
  5. English and foreign currencies are fine, as long as the VAT amount also appears in euros and you can translate on request. Read invoicing in English and another currency.

What factuurmaken does for you

The invoice is right by construction

You type straight into the invoice, in English if you like. Your KVK and VAT numbers, the sequential number and the date are placed automatically; you pick the VAT rate per line and the totals round the way the Dutch tax office expects. For an EU business client you switch the invoice to reverse charge and the mandatory wording appears; under the KOR the same happens.

Your numbering cannot break

Dutch invoice numbers must form one unbroken sequence. Factuurmaken hands out the next number only when an invoice is made final, so a draft you delete never leaves a gap.

Your Dutch accountant reads along

Most expats end up with a Dutch accountant for the income tax return. Instead of e-mailing PDFs, you give them a free accountant account and they see your invoices, expenses and bank lines directly, and download UBL files their own software imports.

Featured: the first quarter

Your first VAT return is due one month after your first quarter ends, whether you have invoiced or not. Because every invoice is already built with the right rates, the overview per quarter is ready: what you invoiced, how much VAT goes with it, per rate. You or your accountant file it at the tax office; factuurmaken deliberately does not file returns.

I freelance for three international clients and send about eight invoices a month. Which plan?

For 8 invoices and 2 quotes a month, Pro is the lowest-priced subscription that fits this example: €9.00 per month excl. VAT.

This plan allows 500 invoices and 500 quotes per billing period.

Limits count invoices and quotes created during your subscription’s billing period, including drafts. Deposits and other instalment invoices count separately. Compare features too if you need additional colleagues or multiple businesses.

Only need individual PDFs without a dashboard? Pay €0.50 per invoice incl. VAT without a subscription. The recommendation above compares subscriptions.

See pricing →

A good fit if

  • You registered with the Chamber of Commerce (KVK) recently and are about to send your first invoices
  • You invoice in English, sometimes in another currency, to clients in and outside the Netherlands
  • You want the VAT and the mandatory details right without learning the Dutch bookkeeping vocabulary first
  • You have, or plan to have, a Dutch accountant and want them to read along rather than retype

Not the right choice if

  • You are not registered with the KVK yet: without a KVK number you cannot send a valid Dutch business invoice
  • You want to file your own Dutch VAT return from the same tool; that is what a bookkeeping suite is for
  • You invoice through an employer of record or an umbrella company that issues invoices for you

Where do you want to go next?

Starting a business in the Netherlands as an expat →Dutch invoice requirements: the checklist →Invoicing clients outside the Netherlands →

Ready to create an invoice?

Create an invoice now See the packages

User-friendly invoicing from €2.50 per month excl. VAT, cancel any month.