Knowledge base: annual accounts, balance sheet and filing
Plain-English explanations of Dutch annual accounts: which documents belong in them, which deadlines apply, how your equity reconciles and what differs per legal form. Every article follows the same route you walk through in the tool.
Practice6 min read
Choosing an English-speaking accountant in the Netherlands
You can prepare and file the annual accounts yourself, and an accountant is only mandatory for an audit. What to ask before you choose one, three routes to compare, and what each of them costs.
Practice6 min read
From accounting package to annual accounts
Your bookkeeping lives in a package and now the annual accounts have to be prepared. The package supplies the figures; the choices, the texts and the publication documents do not come out of it. These are the six steps in between.
Deadlines6 min read
What happens if you file your annual accounts late?
The filing obligation has a 12-month outer limit, but the date that really matters is the date of adoption. If you are late you can usually still put it right — the register is public, though.
Frequently asked question5 min read
Must a VOF file annual accounts?
Most VOFs are not required to file — just like a sole trader. There is one exception, and it sits with the partners, not with the business.
Practice6 min read
Filing your annual accounts with KVK yourself
You do not need an accountant to file. You do need to know your size class beforehand, because it determines what goes with the filing — and that is exactly where it often goes wrong.
Explanation5 min read
Micro, small or medium-sized: what must you publish?
Micro, small or medium-sized is not a label you choose: it follows from your figures. And it determines how much of your annual accounts becomes public.
Frequently asked question5 min read
Must an association or foundation file annual accounts?
An association or foundation usually does not have to file annual accounts. The exception is organisations with a business of some size — and ANBIs have their own publication duty on top of that.
Explanation4 min read
Exemption from the annual accounts obligation: when?
An exemption is not an extension and not a choice: it is only possible on serious grounds, and in practice that means that preparing the accounts is technically impossible.
Behind the scenes5 min read
Woodlands Administration: bookkeeping for SMEs
This site was built by an administrative office. We would rather say that up front than have you find it at the bottom of a page — including when you do not need that office.
Explanation5 min read
Compilation statement: required or not?
A compilation statement is the lightest form of involvement by an accountant. What does it say, and when do you really need one?
Practice6 min read
Depreciating a company car: how it works
A car is usually the largest item on a small business balance sheet. This is how you determine book value and depreciation, without surprises afterwards.
Practice5 min read
Valuing inventory: method and write-downs
Two businesses with the same sales can have a different result, purely because of the way they value their inventory. These are the choices.
Practice5 min read
Receivables and bad debts: what goes on the balance sheet?
A customer does not pay. If you leave that invoice on the balance sheet, your profit is too high and your equity looks rosier than it is. These are the three routes.
Explanation5 min read
Abridged balance sheet: what do you publish at the KVK?
What you file with the KVK is public — and that is not the same as the annual accounts you prepare yourself. Knowing what you do and do not have to publish saves work and keeps your figures out of sight.
Explanation6 min read
Annual accounts or profit tax return?
The same figures, two documents with different rules. Anyone who does not know the difference is shocked by the assessment or misses deductions.
Practice5 min read
Private withdrawals and contributions in the bookkeeping
For a sole trader, private money flows through the business. Where you record it determines whether your profit is correct — and whether your equity reconciles.
Practice5 min read
Your first annual accounts: where do you start?
A first annual account looks different than you think: a shorter financial year, no figures from last year and an opening balance of zero. These are the points to watch.
Practice4 min read
How long must you keep your business records?
Throwing away your records is only allowed after the retention period — and that is longer than many people think. This prevents you from having nothing to show in an audit.
Explanation5 min read
Bookkeeping and annual accounts: the difference
Many entrepreneurs use the words interchangeably. Yet they are two different things, with a different frequency and a different responsibility.
Example6 min read
Annual accounts example: a completed set for a sole trader
Figures say more than text. That is why here is a complete example of a sole trader — with a balance sheet that balances and equity that reconciles.
In practice5 min read
Checklist: preparing your annual accounts
Most delay in annual accounts is not caused by filling in, but by missing documents. This checklist prevents you from having to stop halfway.
Explanation6 min read
Accounting policies: what to record in your annual accounts
Two businesses with the same figures can have a different result, purely because of the rules they follow. Those rules are your accounting policies — and you have to write them down.
In practice6 min read
Why your equity does not reconcile, and how to fix it
Almost everyone preparing annual accounts for the first time runs into it: the equity does not reconcile. This article shows where the difference comes from and how to clear it.
Deadlines5 min read
When must annual accounts be filed with KVK? The deadlines
5 months to prepare, 8 days to file after adoption, and at most 12 months — even if adoption is delayed. That is how you stay out of trouble.
Frequently asked question5 min read
Does a sole trader (eenmanszaak) have to file accounts?
The question every starting entrepreneur asks at some point. The short answer: no. The longer answer is about your record-keeping obligation, your tax return and why the bank still asks for figures.
Explanation6 min read
What belongs in a Dutch annual account? The complete list
Annual accounts are not a single sheet of paper but a set of documents. Anyone who knows which parts belong in them prevents something from being missing at adoption or filing.
Explained per subject
- Glossary: every term from A to ZFrom assets to provisions, with a short explanation per term.
- Preparing annual accountsWhat annual accounts are, which parts belong in them and the order in which you work, including the balance sheet check and the reconciliation of equity.
- Sole trader annual accountsAs a sole trader you do not have to file annual accounts. What your duty to keep records does involve, which statements you need and what the bank asks of you.
- BV annual accountsWhat a BV must include in its annual accounts, who adopts and signs them, which deadlines apply and how to file them with KVK, including corporation tax.
- How to file annual accounts with KVKWho must file annual accounts, what filing means, how the KVK portal works and which deadline applies. Plus what becomes public and what to do if you are late.
- Balance sheet and profit and loss accountHow to prepare the balance sheet and the profit and loss account, how they connect through equity, which items belong where and which mistakes are often made.
- Annual accountsWhat outsourcing, doing it yourself or software requires: what determines the price, what you still do yourself and when an accountant or a report is sensible.
- Prepare your annual accounts in 8 stepsPreparing your own annual accounts: exactly what you need, the eight steps, how much time it takes and which pitfalls to avoid. Without an accountant.
- Annual accounts without an accountantYou are allowed to prepare your own annual accounts. What you then do yourself, what certainty you miss, when to engage an accountant anyway and what it saves.
- Choosing annual accounts softwareWhat to look out for in annual accounts software: the checks, the accounting policies, the KVK documents and a free trial. Also the difference with Excel.
Prepare your annual accounts yourself?
Work through the wizard, check your figures and download the annual accounts and the KVK filing documents as PDFs. € 60,44 per financial year, once.
Je vult eerst alles in en bekijkt het resultaat — betalen doe je pas als je de stukken wilt downloaden. Geen abonnement. En zit er een fout in de stukken die wij kunnen herstellen? Dan leveren we gratis een nieuwe versie, zo vaak als nodig.