Key takeaway: Filing annual accounts in the Netherlands is mandatory for every BV, including foreign-owned ones. For calendar year 2025 the standard deadline is 8 August 2026, or 8 November 2026 if all shareholders are also directors. With the maximum extension the hard limit is 31 December 2026. All BVs now file digitally with the KVK.
Filing annual accounts in the Netherlands is a legal obligation for every Dutch BV, and the deadline for calendar year 2025 is closer than most foreign shareholders expect. The accounts go to the Dutch Chamber of Commerce (KVK), where anyone can look them up. Miss the deadline and you commit an economic offence, and directors can become personally liable if the company later goes bankrupt.
This guide covers who must file, the exact 2026 deadlines, what each size class must submit, how filing works technically, and how it differs from your corporate income tax return.
Is filing annual accounts mandatory for a Dutch BV?
Yes. Filing annual accounts with the KVK Trade Register is mandatory for every BV and NV, including foreign-owned ones.
Yes. Every BV and NV must make its annual accounts public by filing them with the KVK Trade Register, under Book 2, Title 9 of the Dutch Civil Code. This applies just as much to a foreign-owned BV with a parent abroad and no Dutch staff. The obligation also covers cooperatives, mutual insurers and, under conditions, foundations and associations with a turnover of at least โฌ7.5 million. A sole proprietorship (eenmanszaak) does not file, as the government’s guide to filing financial statements explains.
A foreign company that operates through a Dutch branch instead of a BV usually files the accounts of the foreign parent company with the KVK, not separate branch accounts. If you are still choosing between the two, see our comparison of a branch or subsidiary in the Netherlands.
A Dutch subsidiary can be exempt from filing its own full accounts if the parent issues a liability statement (a “403 declaration”), files consolidated accounts that include the subsidiary, and the shareholders consent each year.
What is the deadline for filing annual accounts in 2026?
For calendar year 2025 the standard deadline is 8 August 2026, or 8 November 2026 at the latest if all shareholders are also directors. The hard limit is 31 December 2026.
The deadline depends on three steps: preparation, adoption and filing.
- Preparation: the board prepares the accounts within five months after year-end. The general meeting can extend this by at most five months in special circumstances.
- Adoption: the shareholders adopt the accounts within two months after preparation.
- Filing: the company files within eight days after adoption, and in any case no later than twelve months after year-end.
For accounts covering calendar year 2025, that gives these dates:
| Situation | Prepare by | Adopt by | File with KVK by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard BV, no extension | 31 May 2026 | 31 July 2026 | 8 August 2026 |
| All shareholders are also directors | 31 May 2026 (signing is adoption) | At signing | 8 June 2026, or 8 November 2026 at the latest with extension |
| Maximum extension granted | 31 October 2026 | 31 December 2026 | 31 December 2026 |
When all shareholders are also directors, the accounts are usually adopted the moment all directors sign. The two-month adoption period then does not apply, so the latest filing date is ten months and eight days after year-end. The KVK explains these situations on its page on the filing deadline for annual accounts (in Dutch).
You cannot get an extension for filing itself. If the accounts have not been adopted in time, you must file the prepared, not yet adopted accounts, with a note saying so.
What financial information must a BV submit?
When filing annual accounts, what you submit depends on the size class: micro and small BVs file a condensed or abridged balance sheet, medium-sized and large BVs also file a profit and loss account, management report and auditor’s report.
What you file depends on the size class. A company falls in a class if it meets at least two of the three criteria on two consecutive balance sheet dates.
| Size class | Criteria (two of three) | What you file with the KVK |
|---|---|---|
| Micro | Balance sheet total up to โฌ450,000, turnover up to โฌ900,000, fewer than 10 employees | Condensed balance sheet with limited notes |
| Small | Up to โฌ7.5 million, โฌ15 million, fewer than 50 employees | Abridged balance sheet and notes |
| Medium-sized | Up to โฌ25 million, โฌ50 million, fewer than 250 employees | Somewhat simplified balance sheet and profit and loss account, notes, management report, auditor’s report |
| Large | Above the medium-sized limits | Full accounts, management report and auditor’s report |
What you prepare for the shareholders is often more detailed than what you publish. A small BV prepares a full profit and loss account for its shareholders but does not file it. For the background on the thresholds, read our article on the Dutch size criteria.
Not sure which deadline applies to your BV?
We check your structure, size class and articles of association and give you one date to work towards.
Ask us to check your deadline โHow to file annual accounts with the KVK
Filing is digital via SBR: through the KVK Zelf Deponeren portal for micro and small companies, or through accounting software via Digipoort. Large companies also file digitally since financial year 2025.
Filing annual accounts is fully digital. The KVK accepts annual accounts in a structured format called SBR (Standard Business Reporting), which uses XBRL, a machine-readable financial data format. There are three routes:
- Zelf Deponeren portal: micro and small companies can enter their figures themselves in the KVK online portal, after logging in with eHerkenning.
- SBR through accounting software: your accountant or bookkeeping package generates an XBRL file and sends it to the KVK via Digipoort. This is the standard route for medium-sized companies and for accountants who file many sets of accounts.
- Large companies: since financial year 2025, large companies must also file digitally. Up to financial year 2024 they could still submit a PDF.
Foreign directors often get stuck on the login. The KVK and Dutch tax portals need eHerkenning, which is hard to get without a Dutch citizen service number. A Dutch service provider can file on your behalf through a chain authorisation. If you would rather hand this off, our article on outsourcing accounting in the Netherlands explains how that works.
“For foreign-owned BVs the real deadline problem is rarely the work itself. It is that nobody owns the date. Head office assumes the Dutch accountant files, the accountant waits for signatures from directors abroad, and 8 August passes. Name one person responsible for the filing date, and agree the signing process with your directors in advance.”
What happens if you miss the filing deadline?
Filing annual accounts late is an economic offence that can lead to a fine, and if the BV goes bankrupt within three years, directors can become personally liable.
Late filing has three types of consequences:
- Fines: filing late is an economic offence under the Dutch Economic Offences Act (WED). The Bureau Economische Handhaving (BEH) of the Belastingdienst enforces it and can impose a fine on the company.
- Director liability: if the BV goes bankrupt within three years, late filing creates a legal presumption that the board performed its duties improperly (article 2:248 of the Dutch Civil Code). Directors can then be held personally liable for the deficit in the bankruptcy.
- Commercial damage: banks, credit insurers and suppliers check whether your accounts are filed. A missing filing lowers your credit rating and can delay financing or supplier credit.
The director liability is the risk foreign shareholders underestimate most. It applies to every director, including a director based abroad who never saw the accounts.
Is filing annual accounts the same as filing a corporate tax return?
No. Filing annual accounts happens at the KVK, where the accounts become public; the corporate income tax return goes to the Belastingdienst, is confidential and has its own deadline.
No. They are two separate obligations with different recipients and different deadlines.
| Annual accounts | Corporate income tax return | |
|---|---|---|
| Filed with | KVK (Chamber of Commerce) | Belastingdienst (Dutch Tax Administration) |
| Public? | Yes, anyone can request them | No, confidential |
| Content | Commercial figures under Dutch GAAP or IFRS, abridged by size class | Fiscal profit, which often differs from commercial profit |
| Deadline | 8 days after adoption, at the latest 12 months after year-end | Five months after year-end, unless an extension is granted |
In practice both are built from the same bookkeeping, so it pays to prepare them together. A late or wrong set of accounts usually means a late tax return too.
How can Oakhill help with your financial reporting?
Oakhill prepares, reviews and files annual accounts for Dutch BVs, aligns them with the corporate tax return and files with the KVK on your behalf.
Oakhill prepares, reviews and files annual accounts for Dutch BVs, including foreign-owned companies whose management sits abroad. We work from your bookkeeping, align the commercial accounts and the corporate tax return, and file with the KVK on your behalf. Our financial reporting and controlling services make sure your monthly figures are already in good shape at year-end, and our CFO services turn the same numbers into a report your head office can use.
Frequently asked questions about filing annual accounts in the Netherlands
When must a Dutch BV file its 2025 annual accounts?
Without an extension, by 8 August 2026. If all shareholders are also directors, signing counts as adoption and the latest date is 8 November 2026. With the maximum extension the absolute limit is 31 December 2026.
Can I get an extension for filing annual accounts?
Not for filing annual accounts itself, only for preparing them. The shareholders can extend the preparation period by at most five months in special circumstances. Twelve months after year-end is the hard limit for every legal form.
Does a foreign-owned BV have to file annual accounts?
Yes. The filing obligation applies to every Dutch BV, regardless of where its shareholders or directors are based. Only a subsidiary covered by a 403 declaration of its parent can be exempt.
Do I need an auditor for my Dutch BV?
Only if the BV is medium-sized or large, so if it exceeds at least two of the small-company limits on two consecutive balance sheet dates. Micro and small BVs do not need a statutory audit.
Can I file annual accounts in English?
Yes. Dutch law allows the annual accounts to be prepared in another language if the general meeting decides so. Many foreign-owned BVs prepare and file their accounts in English.
How do I file annual accounts with the KVK?
Digitally, in SBR format. Micro and small companies can use the KVK Zelf Deponeren portal with eHerkenning; others file through accounting software via Digipoort, usually by their accountant.
Does a sole proprietorship have to file annual accounts?
No. A sole proprietorship (eenmanszaak) does not file annual accounts with the KVK, and neither does an ordinary partnership unless all its managing partners are foreign. The obligation applies to legal entities such as BVs, NVs and cooperatives.
What is the fine for filing annual accounts late?
Late filing is an economic offence and the Bureau Economische Handhaving of the Belastingdienst can impose a fine. The bigger risk is director liability: if the BV goes bankrupt within three years, late filing counts as improper management.
What if the accounts are not adopted in time?
You must still file within the legal period. You then file the prepared accounts, stating that they have not yet been adopted, and file the adopted version later.
Is the KVK filing the same as the corporate tax return?
No. The annual accounts go to the KVK and become public. The corporate income tax return goes to the Belastingdienst, stays confidential and has a separate deadline.
Need support with your Dutch BV’s annual accounts and financial reporting?
Contact Oakhill Financial Services for expert guidance. We prepare and file your annual accounts on time and align them with your corporate tax return.
Contact Oakhill โRelated articles
This article is general information, not legal or tax advice. Rules and deadlines can change, so check your own situation with Oakhill Financial Services or the KVK.