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Dutch tax on your assets in China

Living in the Netherlands and still own property, savings or investments in China? You have to declare them in Box 3. The Netherlands–China tax treaty stops you paying twice on property, but savings and investments stay taxable here. Here's how it works, and a calculator to see what it means for you.

Property in China

A house, flat or land in China counts in your Box 3 wealth at its value on 1 January. Under the treaty China may tax that property, and the Netherlands exempts the share of Box 3 tax that falls on it.

So you usually pay no Dutch tax on it, but you still have to declare it. It also counts when the tax-free allowance is spread over your assets, so your other wealth can be taxed slightly more.

Bank accounts and investments in China

Savings, deposits, shares and funds in China stay taxable in Dutch Box 3, just like assets here. The Netherlands is your country of residence and keeps the right to tax them.

If China withheld tax on interest or dividends, it's credited against the Dutch tax on that slice, up to that Dutch tax and the rate the treaty allows.

Converting and declaring

Convert amounts to euros at the exchange rate on 1 January of the tax year. Keep a year-end statement from the bank or broker and a valuation of any property.

Many countries automatically share account information with the Belastingdienst. If you left foreign assets out in earlier years, correcting it voluntarily usually means a lower fine than if the Belastingdienst finds it first.

Money from family in China

Gifts from parents or relatives living in China are not subject to Dutch gift tax, unless the giver is a Dutch national who left the Netherlands less than 10 years ago. From the next 1 January the money does count in your Box 3.

What China itself taxes

  • China has no general annual property tax on homes yet (only pilots in a few cities), but rent from a Chinese apartment is taxed in China.
  • Moving money out of China is limited by the annual personal foreign-exchange quota, which is a currency rule, not a tax: the Dutch Box 3 tax is due on the 1 January value whether or not you can transfer it.

Your accounts and products in China

  • Yuan deposits and wealth-management products at Chinese banks count in Box 3, as do balances in Alipay or WeChat money-market funds. Convert at the 1 January rate.
  • A-shares and Chinese funds count as investments. Chinese tax withheld on dividends can be credited up to the treaty rate.

Common situations

  • Inheriting from parents who lived in China: there is no Dutch inheritance tax when the person who died lived abroad (unless they were a Dutch national who left the Netherlands less than 10 years before). What you inherit counts in your Box 3 from the next 1 January.
  • An apartment registered in your name but lived in by your parents is yours for Box 3: declare it at its value on 1 January (relief applies).

Worked example (2026)

You live in the Netherlands, single, with € 30.000 in a Dutch savings account. In China you own a home in Chengdu worth € 160.000 and € 30.000 in yuan deposits.

Box 3 tax on everything€ 3.098
Treaty relief for the home− € 2.524
Box 3 tax you pay€ 574

The home still raises the tax a little: it counts when the tax-free allowance is spread over everything you own. The tax China levies on the home itself comes on top. Sources: belastingdienst.nl, chinatax.gov.cn.

Keep calculating

General information based on Dutch treaty practice for Box 3. Your own situation may differ; have foreign assets checked by an adviser if in doubt.