← Back to articles

Inheritance or gift from abroad: do I pay Dutch tax?

First published October 2026 · 3 min read

General information only, not advice. Tax rates, thresholds and rules change frequently, and individual circumstances vary. Figures cited are accurate to the best of my knowledge at the date of publication — always verify against belastingdienst.nl (and the tax authority in the other country) before making decisions.

Key takeaways

  • Dutch inheritance and gift tax follow where the person who died or gave the gift lived, not where you live. A gift or inheritance from someone who never lived here is not taxed in the Netherlands.
  • The exceptions involve someone who used to live here: a Dutch national who left less than 10 years ago, or anyone who gives a gift within a year of leaving.
  • The other country may tax it instead, under its own rules.

If you live in the Netherlands and receive an inheritance or a gift from family abroad, the Dutch side is usually the simple part.

The short answer: usually no

Dutch inheritance tax (erfbelasting) and gift tax (schenkbelasting) depend on where the person who died, or who made the gift, lived. Your own residence does not decide it. If that person lived abroad and was not Dutch, there is no Dutch inheritance tax.[1] The same applies to a gift from someone who has never lived in the Netherlands, and you do not need to file a return for it.[2]

When Dutch tax can still apply

There are two exceptions, both about someone who used to live here:

In those cases you file a Dutch return if the amount is above the exemption. Filing does not always mean paying — an exemption can still cover it.[2]

Where the tax may fall instead

The other country may well tax it, and its rules work differently from the Dutch ones.

If both countries do tax the same inheritance, Dutch rules exist to prevent double taxation.[1]

What happens next on the Dutch side

What you receive becomes part of your wealth here. Savings and investments count in Box 3 from the next 1 January snapshot date, and a property you inherit abroad is declared in Box 3 too, usually with relief for double taxation — see Box 3 2026 — what expats in the Netherlands need to know. And if you later pass money on to your own children, the Dutch rules apply, because then you are the giver — see Tax-free gifting to children in the Netherlands.

Sources

  1. Belastingdienst — Ik heb een erfenis uit het buitenland, waar betaal ik erfbelasting? (no Dutch inheritance tax if the deceased was not Dutch and did not live in the Netherlands, or was Dutch but died more than 10 years after leaving; rules to prevent double taxation). belastingdienst.nl
  2. Belastingdienst — Ik krijg een schenking uit het buitenland, moet ik aangifte schenkbelasting doen? (no return if the giver never lived in the Netherlands; a return above the exemption if a Dutch giver left less than 10 years ago, or a non-Dutch giver less than 1 year ago; filing does not always mean paying). belastingdienst.nl
  3. Successiewet 1956, art. 3 (woonplaatsfictie) — a Dutch national who lived in the Netherlands is deemed resident for ten years after leaving; anyone who lived in the Netherlands and makes a gift within one year of leaving is deemed resident for that gift. wetten.overheid.nl
  4. Revenue — Completing your gift or inheritance tax return (IT38) (CAT applies where the disponer is resident or ordinarily resident in Ireland, the beneficiary is resident or ordinarily resident in Ireland, or the property is in Ireland; the person receiving the gift or inheritance may need to file and pay). revenue.ie
  5. Revenue — CAT thresholds (Group A €420,000 for gifts and inheritances on or after 7 October 2026; tax at 33%). revenue.ie
  6. GOV.UK — How Inheritance Tax works (the estate pays; beneficiaries do not normally pay tax on what they inherit). gov.uk
← Back to articles