New Box 3 tax on crypto from 2028 in the Netherlands: what is changing and what does it mean for you?

From 1 January 2028, the way wealth is taxed in Box 3 in the Netherlands will change. The existing system, which is based on a deemed return, will be replaced by a tax on actual return, including unrealised gains. This is a fundamental change for Dutch traditional investors and crypto investors.

In this article, we explain in detail what this means for you and how much you may have to pay, with clear examples. Please note: this article is written based on the information currently available. There is significant criticism of the proposal and the plan still needs to be reviewed by the Senate. It is possible that further amendments will be made. On 25 February, Minister Eelco Heinen (Finance) announced that they will go back to the drawing board to revise the legislative proposal.

What falls under Box 3?

Box 3 is the tax category for private wealth. It does not concern income from employment (Box 1) or income from your own BV (Box 2), but assets that you hold as a private individual.

Box 3 includes, among others:

• Cryptocurrencies
• Shares and ETFs
• Bonds
• Investment funds
• Savings
• Second homes (not your primary residence)
• Receivables (such as money you have lent out)

Debts may be deducted from taxable assets under certain conditions. In addition, a tax-free allowance applies per person. Only the assets above this allowance are taxed.

Warning: The information in this article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or tax advice. Although the content has been carefully compiled and is based on various sources, inaccuracies or misinterpretations cannot be ruled out. Always do your own research and consult a financial advisor or tax advisor before making investment decisions. Investing in crypto assets involves a risk of loss.

What is changing in Box 3?

To properly understand what will change in Box 3, we first outline the current situation for investors.

The current situation (until 31 December 2027)

Up to and including 2027, assets in Box 3 are taxed based on a deemed return (5.88% for investments in 2025). This means that the government does not look at what you actually earned, but assumes a fixed percentage return on your assets.

Whether your crypto has increased in value, decreased or stayed the same is in principle irrelevant for tax purposes. The Dutch Tax Administration works with fixed returns per asset category. In the case of investments, this is 5.88% in 2025. The Box 3 tax rate in 2025 and 2026 is then 36%.

Normally, in Box 3, the tax-free allowance is first deducted and any debts are offset against taxable assets.

The tax-free allowance in the current system

In 2026, the tax-free allowance amounts to €59,357 per person (€118,714 for fiscal partners combined).

This means that this amount is first deducted from your total Box 3 assets. Only the assets above this threshold are included in the tax calculation.

The system up to and including 2027 is therefore:

Total assets – debts – tax-free allowance = taxable base

A deemed return is then calculated on this taxable base, on which 36% tax is paid.
In the current system, you therefore indirectly pay tax on your assets, not on your actual profit.

Suppose:

• You own €60,000 in savings.
• You own €100,000 in crypto.
• No debts.
• Tax-free allowance: €59,357.

How does it work now?

Below, the process of the current system up to the end of 2027 is explained in practice.

Step 1: Determine total assets

You have €60,000 in savings and €100,000 in crypto. Your total assets therefore amount to €160,000. This amount is considered your “total Box 3 assets”.

Step 2: Deduct the tax-free allowance

The tax-free allowance is €59,357. You must deduct this amount from your total assets. In this example, that means: €160,000 – €59,357
= €100,643. In other words, you are left with a taxable base of €100,643.

Step 3: Calculate deemed return (investment portion)

For simplicity, we only look at the deemed investment return of 5.88%. 5.88% of €100,643 is €5,917.81. This amount is considered your “taxable return”. Your taxable return is the actual amount that is taxed by the Dutch Tax Administration.

Step 4: Calculate the tax

The final step is to calculate the tax payable. The current Box 3 tax rate is 36%. 36% of €5,917.81 is €2,130.41.
You therefore pay approximately €2,130 in tax, regardless of whether your crypto actually generated a profit.

New situation (from 2028)

From 1 January 2028, the Netherlands will switch to a so-called capital growth tax in Box 3.

Please note, the new system is still under development:
The new Box 3 system has been adopted by the House of Representatives and is scheduled to enter into force on 1 January 2028. However, the exact implementation may still change through the 2028 Tax Plan.
In addition, there is criticism regarding its feasibility and the taxation of unrealised gains, particularly for volatile investments such as crypto.
The amounts and system described in this article are based on the current legislative proposal. Final rules may still be amended.

What changes regarding the tax-free allowance?

According to the current legislative proposal, the tax-free allowance will be abolished. Instead, a so-called tax-free result will be introduced, which according to the current plans amounts to approximately €1,800 per person per year.

This means that it is no longer part of your assets that is exempt, but part of your annual return. This is a fundamental change in the system.

Instead of looking at a deemed return, the focus will be on the actual return achieved on your assets within a calendar year. For crypto investors, this is a fundamental system change with a major impact on their investments.

What exactly is taxed?

From 2028 onwards, the Dutch Tax Administration will look at everything that affects your assets within a calendar year. For crypto, this means that the total annual result is calculated based on:

1. Price increases (value changes during the year)
2. Price decreases (negative return)
3. Direct income such as staking rewards
4. Other benefits from crypto (for example lending income)

This applies not only to crypto, but to all assets in Box 3, such as shares, ETFs, savings and a second home. Your primary residence does not fall under Box 3, but under Box 1.

The biggest change: unrealised gains are taxed

The most important and far-reaching change for crypto investors is that unrealised gains will also be taxed.

Unrealised gains mean that your crypto increases in value without you selling it. Under the old system, it made little difference whether you sold or not, because deemed returns were used. From 2028, this changes fundamentally.

The taxable moment shifts to the annual change in value. A sale is no longer decisive for tax purposes. The increase in value itself becomes the taxable event.

How is the return calculated?

The Dutch Tax Administration looks at all asset components within Box 3. This means:

• Crypto
• Shares and ETFs
• Savings (interest on savings only, not value increases due to additional deposits)
• Investment funds
• A second home
• Other investments

Debts may be deducted from Box 3 assets under certain conditions.

For each asset component, the return is calculated as follows:

End value – starting value + income received = return per component

After that, all positive and negative returns within Box 3 are added together. The tax-free result of approximately €1,800 per person is then deducted from this total return. You only pay 36% tax on the remaining amount. To make the calculations more tangible, here are concrete examples for crypto investors under different scenarios:

How does the new Box 3 system work?

Below we outline three examples of how the new Box 3 system works in practice.

Example 1 – Only price increase

Under the new system, the Dutch Tax Administration looks only at the “on paper” realised profit, regardless of whether you have actually withdrawn it or not. In theory, this means you may have to pay tax on money you have not actually received yet. This is also one of the reasons why it is controversial.

Now the example, suppose you have:

• Crypto worth €100,000 on 1 January
• The value has increased to €140,000 on 31 December (so 40% profit on paper)
• You have not sold anything and you are not staking

The increase in value is therefore €40,000. A tax-free result of €1,800 per person applies. You may deduct the tax-free result from the increase in value, which means your taxable return in this example is €38,200. You must pay 36% tax on this amount, which comes to €13,752. So you pay €13,752 in tax, even though you have not sold anything. If you do not have €13,752 in your savings account, you will therefore have to sell your positions purely to be able to pay the tax.

Example 2 – Price increase + staking

Under the new system, the Dutch Tax Administration looks at the total actual return. This means that not only the increase in value of your crypto counts, but also any income such as staking rewards. This income is also taxed, regardless of whether you have converted it into euros or not.

Now the example, suppose you have:

• Crypto worth €100,000 on 1 January
• The value has increased to €130,000 on 31 December
• You have also received €5,000 in staking rewards
• You have not sold anything

The increase in value is €30,000. If you add the received staking rewards of €5,000, the total return comes to €35,000. A tax-free result of €1,800 per person applies. You may deduct the tax-free result from the total return, which means your taxable return in this example is €33,200.

You must pay 36% tax on this amount, which comes to €11,952. So you pay €11,952 in tax, even though you have not sold anything. Here too, you may have to sell (part of) your position if you do not have sufficient liquid funds to pay the tax.

Example 3 – Price decrease

Under the new system, the actual return is taken into account. This means that not only profits are taxed, but losses are also actually included as a negative return.

Now the example, suppose you have:

• Crypto worth €100,000 on 1 January
• The value has decreased to €75,000 on 31 December
• You have no other income (such as staking)

After subtracting the end value from the starting value, a decrease in value of €25,000 remains. Your total return therefore amounts to – €25,000.

Because the total return is negative, you do not pay any tax in Box 3 in this year. In addition, according to the legislative proposal, a negative Box 3 result may under certain conditions be offset against future positive returns. This means that you may be able to use this loss to pay less tax in later years when you achieve a positive return again.

What happens in the event of strong volatility?

Crypto is known for large price fluctuations. In the new Box 3 system, it is crucial to understand that the Dutch Tax Administration looks at your return per calendar year. Each year is taxed separately. So it does not look at your total profit over multiple years, but at the change in value within a single year (1 January through 31 December).

The impact of volatility

To give a clear example of how volatility in combination with the new Box 3 system can have a major impact on your assets, we have outlined an example below:

Year 1 – Strong increase

In the first year, there is a significant price increase.

Suppose you have:

• Crypto worth €200,000 on 1 January
• The value has increased to €350,000 on 31 December
• You have not sold anything and have no other income

The increase in value amounts to €150,000. A tax-free result of €1,800 per person applies. You may deduct this amount from the return, resulting in a taxable return of €148,200. You must pay 36% tax on this amount: 36% × €148,200 = €53,352

You therefore pay €53,352 in tax for that year, even though you have not sold anything. If you cannot pay this tax from other funds, you will have to sell (part of) your position to meet your tax obligation.

Year 2 – Decrease

In the second year, the market turns and the value of your assets drops significantly. This shows how volatility combined with annual taxation can have a major impact.

Suppose you have:

• Crypto worth €350,000 on 1 January
• The value has decreased to €210,000 on 31 December
• You have no other income

The decrease in value therefore amounts to €140,000. Your total return for this year comes to – €140,000.
Because the return is negative, you do not pay any Box 3 tax in this year. After all, tax is only levied on positive returns.

According to the legislative proposal, a negative Box 3 result may under certain conditions be offset against future positive returns. This means that you may be allowed to use the loss to pay less tax in later years. However, it does not lead to a refund of the €53,352 you paid in year 1.

What does this mean over two years?

If we do not look at one separate year, but at the overall picture over two years, the effect of volatility combined with annual taxation becomes truly clear.

If we place the figures side by side:

• Value at the start of year 1: €200,000
• Value at the end of year 2: €210,000
• Total increase over two years: €10,000

On paper, it seems as though you made a €10,000 profit over two years.

But in year 1 you paid €53,352 in tax on the paper profit realised at that time. In year 2 you pay no tax, because the return was negative. However, you do not get the previously paid tax back.

Your net position after two years is therefore:

€210,000 – €53,352 = €156,648

You started with €200,000.

Even though your portfolio is on paper €10,000 higher than two years earlier, due to the earlier tax payment you effectively have €43,352 less wealth than your starting capital.

Of course, this is an extreme example, but it shows the kind of impact the new tax system can have on investments in volatile markets.

What about a BV?

If you hold crypto privately, from 2028 onwards it falls under Box 3 and is taxed annually based on actual changes in value.

If you hold crypto through a private limited company (BV), it does not fall under Box 3 but under corporate income tax (CIT). This means that not your assets are taxed, but the company’s profit. That is a fundamentally different starting point.

How is profit determined in a BV?

In a BV, profit is determined according to tax and accounting rules. This is done through the annual financial statements, which consist, among other things, of the balance sheet and the profit and loss account.

The annual financial statements provide insight into which assets the BV holds, which liabilities correspond to them and what result has been achieved in the financial year. Assets are valued according to specific rules. Think of valuation rules for investments, inventories or provisions. These rules determine at what moment and at which value items are recorded in the administration.

Importantly, not every increase in value automatically leads to taxable profit. In many cases, the realisation principle applies: profit is only taxed when it is actually realised, for example upon sale.

This means:

• If crypto increases in value but is not sold, this often does not yet result in taxable profit.
• If crypto is sold at a profit, that profit becomes part of the taxable annual profit.

In the case of active trading, valuation at market value may be mandatory, which means unrealised gains can fall within the result. The tax treatment therefore depends on how the BV actually operates.

Corporate income tax rates

A BV pays corporate income tax on its taxable annual profit (currently 19% up to €200,000 and 25.8% above that).

This is a different system from the 36% levy on Box 3 returns. The difference lies not only in the rate, but mainly in the moment at which profit arises and is taxed.

Additional costs and obligations of a BV

Holding crypto through a BV brings, in addition to different tax rules, extra obligations and costs. A BV must keep proper accounts, prepare annual financial statements and file a corporate income tax return each year. In many cases, you will hire a bookkeeper or accountant for this.

If you are the owner and director of the BV, you must usually also pay yourself a mandatory minimum salary. These recurring costs and obligations influence what you ultimately retain net. A BV is therefore not more advantageous than holding crypto privately in every situation.

Can I hold my crypto through my BV?

Yes, you can hold crypto through your BV.

If you purchase and hold crypto directly through your BV:

• The crypto does not fall under Box 3.
• Profits are taxed via corporate income tax (CIT).
• You only pay personal tax when profits are distributed (Box 2).

This means that taxation in many cases takes place upon realisation and not automatically each year based on value changes, as in Box 3.

As long as profits remain within the BV, they are not taxed privately. Tax in Box 2 only follows when dividends are distributed.

Are you considering a business crypto account?

At Finst, you can open a business account with your BV, SME or family office, but also as an asset manager. This allows you to hold crypto within your corporate structure in an environment designed for institutional use. View here how you can open a business account with Finst.

Conclusion

The introduction of the new Box 3 system as of 1 January 2028 represents a fundamental change in the way wealth is taxed in the Netherlands. Whereas up to and including 2027 a deemed return was used, from 2028 onwards the actual return will be considered, including unrealised increases in value.

For crypto investors, this has major consequences. Price increases are taxed annually, even if no sale takes place. At the same time, price decreases and income such as staking rewards are included in the total Box 3 result. Because settlement takes place per calendar year, strong fluctuations can have an immediate tax impact.

The new system makes it clear that it is no longer the sale that determines the taxable moment, but the annual development in value of your total assets. For investors, this means that returns must be assessed not only financially, but also fiscally on a yearly basis. Proper administration and insight into your total Box 3 position therefore become more important than ever.