Receiving your first provisional tax assessment
- Shivani Boer
- Edited 2 July 2026
- 2 min
- Starting
- Finance
Every year in January the Netherlands Tax Administration sends entrepreneurs a provisional assessment for the upcoming year. Read what the provisional assessment entails and what you should do.
What do you need to arrange when starting a business?
Answer the questions on Business.gov.nl and see the steps that are important in your situation.
If you start a business, you usually only pay your income tax over a year after it has ended. After you file an income tax return as an entrepreneur for the first time, you can expect to receive your first provisional assessment (voorlopige aanslag) in January of the following year.
What is a provisional assessment?
The provisional  (in Dutch) is an estimate of your taxes for the running year, based on previous tax returns and the details you have provided in your income tax return. You pay (or receive) the income tax and the Health Insurance  in advance, spread over the year. The advantage is that you do not have to pay a large amount in one go.
Later you will receive your final tax  (in Dutch). This offers a calculation of what taxes you actually owe or should get back.Â
How can a provisional assessment help you?
If you receive a provisional tax assessment, you will have a rough idea of how much tax you’ll have to pay or get back for that year. Do you have to pay tax? You can pay it in monthly instalments, rather than a large amount at once. Will you get a refund? You can receive it in instalments throughout the year.
This helps you avoid surprises, keeps your accounts better organised, and gives you greater control over your income and expenditure.
When will you get your provisional assessment?
For the 2026 tax year, you can apply for a provisional tax assessment as from 1 December  (in Dutch). The Netherlands Tax Administration usually sends the first provisional assessments out around the end of December 2025 or the beginning of January 2026.
Apply before 1 May
You can usually apply for a provisional assessment until 1 of the following year. The exact date depends on your circumstances, for example, whether you have been granted an extension for your tax return.
Have you already filed your tax return for  (in Dutch)? If so, you can no longer apply for a provisional assessment for that year. It is then no longer possible to make any changes.
Just started a business?
If you start a business this  (in Dutch), you will receive your final income tax assessment next year for the profit you have made. Around the same time, you will often also receive an estimate for the following year.
To avoid having to pay a large amount in one go, you can apply for a provisional tax assessment. This allows you to pay the tax due under the final assessment in advance, in monthly instalments.
What to do if you get a provisional tax assessment?
Did you get a provisional tax assessment? Always check that all the details are correct. Is something incorrect? If so, correct it via Mijn  (in Dutch).
Changing a provisional tax assessment
You should also change the assessment if your circumstances change. For example, if you expect to earn more or less. You should also let the Tax Administration know if you’re moving in with a partner or getting divorced, as this affects the tax you’ll have to pay.
Did you not get a provisional assessment?
Did you not get a provisional tax assessment, but would you like to request one? Take a look at the step-by-step  (in Dutch) from the Netherlands Tax Administration to request one.
