Moving here with your own car
If you move to the Netherlands and bring a car you already owned and used abroad, you can register it without BPM. From an EU country you must have owned and used it for at least six months before the move. From outside the EU you declare it as household goods at Customs.
You must apply for the exemption, and if you sell, rent out or lend the car within 12 months, BPM becomes due after all.
BPM on an imported car
Otherwise, a car registered in the Netherlands for the first time pays BPM, based mainly on its CO2 emissions. For a used car the BPM is reduced for its age and depreciation, using a fixed table, a valuation report or a price list. The Belastingdienst's BPM calculator gives the amount.
Road tax (MRB)
Once registered, you pay road tax every quarter or month, based on weight, fuel type and your province. Electric cars still pay a reduced rate that is being phased up; plug-in hybrids pay the normal rate since 2026. Use the Belastingdienst's MRB calculator for your car.
Sources
This article is based on these official pages. If anything here differs from them, the official page is right.
- Vrijstellingen bpm (in Dutch)
- Veranderingen motorrijtuigenbelasting (in Dutch)
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