Gross to Net: How Dutch Salary Tax Actually Works in 2026

1Gross to net in a nutshell

2The 2026 brackets

3A raise never lowers your net pay

Only the part of your income above a threshold is taxed at the higher rate. A raise from €38,000 to €40,000 a year adds €1,253 net: less than the raise, because tax credits shrink as income rises, but always something.

4Two credits lower the tax

5What you keep at each salary

6Holiday allowance (vakantiegeld)

Almost every contract adds at least 8% of your salary as holiday allowance, usually paid in one go in May or June. It is taxed like salary, not tax-free. Because it is paid in one month, payroll often withholds it at the higher special rate (bijzonder tarief); the difference comes back in your tax return.

7Pension contributions come off before tax

Your own pension contribution is deducted before tax, so it costs less than it seems. On a €60,000 salary, a €3,000 contribution lowers your net pay by only €1,486 a year.

8Why your payslip differs from an estimate

Bonus or 13th month

Withheld at the special rate, often higher than your real rate. See bonus tax.

Two jobs

Only one employer should apply the tax credits, or you pay back after filing.

Your pension scheme

Contributions and the part of salary they are based on differ per scheme.

The 30% ruling

A salary threshold, a cap and a maximum term apply. See the 30% ruling.

Company car or allowances

Bijtelling adds to taxable income; tax-free allowances add to net. See bijtelling.

9At AOW age

From state pension age you no longer pay the AOW premium, so the first bracket drops to 17.85%. You also lose the labour tax credit on income earned from then on, which partly offsets the lower rate. See AOW, the state pension.

10Common questions