Freelancing in the Netherlands: ZZP, the KvK and the self-employed permit

Amsterdam is full of freelancers, but for an Australian the hard part isn't finding clients. It's getting a permit that lets you have them.

The short version

• Without an EU passport or a partner-based permit with free work rights, you need the self-employed residence permit, which uses a points test: at least 30 points in each of three parts [2].
• Australians apply from inside the Netherlands without an entry visa (MVV), and the 2026 fee is €423 [1][4].
• Registering a business with the KvK costs a one-off €85.15 in 2026 [5].
• VAT is usually 21%, returns are usually quarterly, and turnover under €20,000 a year can qualify for the small business scheme (KOR) [6].
• Since 1 January 2025 the Tax Administration has been checking for false self-employment. Fines in 2026 are generally limited to wilful or grossly negligent cases [7].

First, check whether you even need the self-employed permit

ZZP stands for zelfstandige zonder personeel, a self-employed person with no staff. It's a tax and business status, not a visa. Whether you can freelance depends on the residence permit you already hold:

The Americans and Japanese have a shortcut through old trade treaties, which is why you'll read online about the "DAFT visa". Australians don't have an equivalent, so we go through the standard points test [1].

The self-employed permit and its points test

The IND decides the permit, but the core question is whether your business serves an "essential Dutch interest". That's measured with a scoring system in three parts, and you need at least 30 points in each [2]:

There's a safety net: if parts A and B together score at least 90 points, each at least 45, a weak part C is lifted to the minimum [2]. Financing confirmed by a Dutch bank counts for a lot in the financing criterion [2].

Honestly, this is a hard test for a solo web designer or copywriter. It suits people with a track record, a real plan and something new to offer. Australians who freelance in Amsterdam more often arrive on a partner permit or an EU passport and register with the KvK from there.

How to apply

1. Register your business with the KvK first. The IND wants a KvK extract no older than three months, or your KvK number [1].
2. Build the evidence. Diplomas (foreign ones may need evaluation by Nuffic), employment history, income records, references and a business plan with a turnover and liquidity forecast of at least three years [1].
3. Get the numbers checked. Financial documents must be checked by an independent expert such as an accountant or bookkeeper, and the income section needs an accountant's compilation report [1].
4. Apply in the Netherlands. As an Australian you don't need an MVV entry visa, so you apply from inside the country [1]. You'll also need a police certificate and to give biometrics at an IND desk [1].
5. Pay the fee. €423 for a first application in 2026 [4].
6. Keep earning. For self-employed people the IND uses an income benchmark of €1,766.77 gross profit a month (including holiday allowance) for July to December 2026 [3]. Your business needs to support you long term.

Registering with the KvK and the tax basics

Once you're allowed to work for yourself, you register with the Chamber of Commerce (Kamer van Koophandel, KvK). In Amsterdam that usually means an appointment at the KvK office, and you'll need your BSN and your address first. The one-off registration fee is €85.15 in 2026, adjusted each year and tax-deductible [5]. Most freelancers register as a sole trader (eenmanszaak). The KvK passes your details to the Tax Administration, which then sends you a VAT number.

VAT and the KOR

The standard VAT (btw) rate is 21%, with 9% for some goods and services and 0% or exempt for others [6]. Most freelancers file VAT returns quarterly [6]. If your turnover is under €20,000 a calendar year, you can opt into the small business scheme (kleineondernemersregeling, KOR) and stop charging VAT, but you then can't reclaim VAT on your costs either [6]. That's a bad trade if you just bought a €2,500 laptop.

Income tax for the self-employed

Profit is taxed in Box 1 like a salary, with a few entrepreneur reliefs. The 2026 figures from the KvK [6]:

• Self-employed deduction (zelfstandigenaftrek): €1,200, down from €2,470 in 2025 and falling to €900 in 2027. You need to meet the hours criterion of at least 1,225 hours a year in your business.
• SME profit exemption (MKB-winstvrijstelling): 12.70% of profit after the entrepreneur deductions.
• Health insurance contribution: freelancers pay an income-related Zvw contribution of 4.85% in 2026, via a separate assessment from the Tax Administration.

That last one surprises people. You still buy your own basic health insurance policy as well. Set aside a chunk of every invoice; first-year freelancers who don't often get a provisional assessment that hurts.

The false self-employment crackdown

This is the topic every ZZP'er in Amsterdam talks about. Since 1 January 2025 the Tax Administration has been actively checking whether freelancers are genuinely self-employed under the law known as the Wet DBA [7]. If your client tells you when and how to do the work, and you sit in their team like an employee, it may be employment in disguise. The client then owes payroll taxes, and you could face an extra assessment [7].

What that means in practice:

• Assessments generally don't go back before 1 January 2025, unless the error was deliberate [7].
• In 2026, fines are generally reserved for wilful misconduct or gross negligence [7].
• Model agreements are being phased out. The Tax Administration no longer approves new ones, and existing approved ones can be used until the end of 2029, but only if the work matches the agreement [7].
• A low-rate presumption is coming. A law has been passed letting freelancers paid €38 an hour or less claim they are really employees, with the client having to prove otherwise [8]. Business.gov.nl expects it to apply from 2027, but the start date had not been fixed when we checked [7][8].

Many large Dutch companies became nervous and stopped hiring freelancers for long, full-time roles. Have several clients, set your own hours, use your own tools and invoice for results, not for sitting at a desk.

The Australian angle: tax treaty, super and social security

Freelancing from Amsterdam doesn't cut you off from home, and that cuts both ways.

Tax. Australia and the Netherlands have a double tax agreement signed in 1976 and amended in 1986 [9]. It has separate rules for business profits and for independent personal services, so a freelancer is treated differently from an employee [9]. If you become a Dutch tax resident and a foreign resident for Australian purposes, your invoices to Australian clients are generally Dutch income. If you keep strong ties at home and the ATO still treats you as an Australian resident, you'll be reporting worldwide income in both places and relying on the treaty and foreign income tax offsets. Get the residency question settled before your first invoice.

Super. No one is paying the Superannuation Guarantee for you any more, and Dutch law doesn't force freelancers into a pension fund either. Your Australian super keeps sitting there and can still grow. Voluntary contributions are possible, but contribution caps and tax rules still apply, so check the effect with the ATO or a licensed adviser before topping up.

Social security. The Australia–Netherlands social security agreement, in its current form since 2003, covers Dutch old age and invalidity insurance for the self-employed [10]. Your Dutch residence years count towards the Dutch state pension, and they can help fill gaps in the 10-year residence test if you later claim the Australian Age Pension from Australia [10]. The agreement's coverage rules for self-employed people aren't spelt out on the government FAQ, so ask the ATO directly if you're working for Australian clients [10].

Want to hear how other Australians set up as ZZP'ers, from KvK appointments to first VAT returns? Join Cooee Netherlands, our Facebook group for Australians in the Netherlands. Plenty of members have been through the paperwork and are happy to tell you what they'd do differently.

Sources

1. Application form 7524: self-employed person – IND
2. Dutch scoring system: business of essential interest – IND
3. Required amounts: income requirements – IND
4. Fees: costs of an application – IND
5. Registration fee – KVK
6. Belastingtarieven 2026: alle tarieven voor ondernemers – KVK
7. Avoid false self-employment – Business.gov.nl
8. Low hourly rate for self-employed person can lead to employment contract – Business.gov.nl
9. Synthesised text of the MLI and the Australia–Netherlands tax agreement – ATO
10. Social Security Agreement between Australia and the Netherlands: FAQ – Department of Social Services

Keep reading

• Working in Amsterdam: contracts, holiday pay and the kennismigrant route
• Dutch tax basics for Australians, including the expat ruling
• Are you still an Australian tax resident once you move?
• Your super while you live overseas