As a self-employed person in the Netherlands, you often have to travel on business, such as visiting customers, suppliers or to other business locations. These trips naturally entail costs such as fuel costs and eventually maintenance costs. To help self-employed people meet their travel costs, the tax-free kilometre deduction plan was created for business trips in the Netherlands.

Example: Having driven 1,000 KM in business trips in 2023, €210 (per driven kilometre €0,21) is a tax-free kilometre deduction that can be saved as costs to lower your profit.

Tax-free Kilometre Deduction

The tax-free kilometre deduction was made possible in the Netherlands and allows self-employed people to deduct the costs for business kilometres travelled to lower their profits. Under the current plan, the maximum deduction is €0,21 per kilometre. This means that self-employed people can deduct up to this amount as costs per business kilometre travelled. As a self-employed person, you can charge other rates per kilometre for business trips, such as €5 per driven kilometre, but only up to €0,21 per kilometre driven can be deducted as costs. 
It is important to note that the tax-free kilometre deduction only applies to business trips and commuting trips. Private trips do not fall under this plan. In addition, self-employed people must base the deduction on the actual number of business kilometres travelled and there may not be a fixed amount per month.

Deduction Conditions

To qualify for the tax-free kilometre deduction, self-employed people must meet certain conditions. Some important conditions are:
1.    The means of transport is used for business purposes.
2.    Business trips are recorded and saved, and can be proven in the event of an audit.

3.    There is a business agreement or assignment.
4.    No other deductions or allowances are received for the same business trips, such as fuel costs.

Deduction Advantages

The tax-free kilometre deduction offers several benefits for self-employed people. Some benefits are:
1.    Cost compensation: self-employed people are partially compensated for the costs they make during business trips, such as fuel and maintenance costs.
2.    Incentive for sustainable mobility: The plan encourages self-employed people to use sustainable means of transport, such as electric cars, which helps reduce CO2 emissions.
3.    Financial incentive: The tax-free kilometre deduction makes it more financially attractive for self-employed people to keep a good track of their business trips, because the business kilometres travelled can be reported as costs that lower their profit.
4.    Administrative simplicity: The plan makes it easier for self-employed people to report the decuction for their business trips as costs, because no complicated tax calculations are required.