Deducting pre-start costs for your business
Written by Ilias Aarrass6 min read · Published on · Last reviewed on 
In short
Costs you incurred with the business you were about to start in mind are pre-start costs, deducted in your first business year and in practice up to five years back, while investments above € 450 go on your opening balance sheet at current value.
- In the end there must be a business: without a source of income there is no deduction.
- VAT on pre-start costs follows its own, shorter deadline than pre-start costs for income tax.
- Investment relief belongs to the year of the investment, so pre-start purchases generally fall outside it.
- If you opt for the small businesses scheme, you cannot reclaim the VAT on your pre-start costs.
Before your first invoice goes out, you have often already spent money. A course, a laptop, a domain name, travel to a first meeting, the chamber of commerce registration. Many starters think those costs are lost because the business did not yet exist, but that is not so: they are called pre-start costs and you may deduct them. Conditions do apply, and investments follow a different route from ordinary costs. This article covers what you can include, how far back you may go and how to process it in your first return.
What are pre-start costs?
Pre-start costs are expenses you made with the business you were about to start in mind. The link with that business is what counts: you incurred the costs because you wanted to start this company. They are deductible in your business's first year, and you may include costs from the preceding years. In practice a period of up to five years before the start is accepted, provided the link is clear.
Importantly: in the end there must actually be a business. If it stays at plans and you never become an entrepreneur for income tax, there is no source of income and therefore no deduction. If you are unsure whether you are already an entrepreneur, read entrepreneur for income tax or for VAT.
| Cost | Deductible | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| Market research and advisory meetings | yes | including the cost of a bookkeeper or lawyer |
| Chamber of commerce registration | yes | see [registering with the chamber of commerce](kb:inschrijven-bij-de-kvk) |
| Domain name, website and business cards | yes | a more expensive website is capitalised, see [having a website built](kb:website-laten-maken-kosten-aftrekken) |
| A course or training for your trade | yes | provided it targets this work, see [training costs](kb:studiekosten-opleidingen-aftrekken) |
| Travel to clients and suppliers | yes | in your own car € 0.25 per kilometre |
| A laptop or tools above € 450 | through depreciation | on the opening balance sheet at the value at start |
Investments made before the start
If you bought something durable before you started, for example a laptop, a camera or tools above € 450, that is not an ordinary cost but an asset. You put it on your opening balance sheet at its value at the moment you start using it for business. If the laptop was a year old, you take its current value rather than the old purchase price. You then depreciate that under the ordinary rules.
The small-scale investment relief belongs to the year in which you make the investment and take on the obligation. Investments from before your first business year generally fall outside it. So if you are about to buy an expensive asset just before the start, consider making that purchase in your first business year, when the relief can apply.
Pre-start costs in your first return
- Course last year
- € 1,200 excluding VAT
- Travel and meetings
- € 300
- Chamber of commerce and domain
- € 100
- A laptop ten months old
- current value € 700, on the opening balance sheet
- Deduction in year 1
- € 1,600 of costs plus depreciation on the laptop
Result: If your first-year profit is lower than your pre-start costs, a loss arises that you can offset against other years; see [offsetting losses](kb:verlies-verrekenen-zzp).
VAT follows its own route
You can reclaim the VAT on pre-start costs, but that does not follow the same rules as income tax. You need the invoices in your name or your business's name, and you reclaim the VAT in your first return or with a separate request. The deadlines are shorter than for pre-start costs in income tax, so do not wait; all the details are in reclaiming VAT on pre-start costs.
If you opt for the small businesses scheme, you cannot reclaim that VAT. With a start involving sizeable investments that is often a reason not to use the scheme just yet. Work that through before you register, because you are in principle bound to it for three years.
What does not count
Not everything from before the start is deductible. Costs you would have incurred anyway stay private: your ordinary phone subscription, your everyday clothing, a course you took out of interest. Expenses for an entirely different plan you abandoned also do not belong to the business you started afterwards. For those, what is written in the cost of an investment that failed applies, and only if there was a business.
Also watch the line with a hobby. If for years you occasionally sold something without a profit motive, your pre-start costs do not begin ten years back but at the moment you started seriously turning it into a business. See from side income to a business for how that transition works and what to record.
- Gather all receipts and invoices from before your start, with date and purpose.
- Separate ordinary costs from investments above € 450 each.
- Put the investments on your opening balance sheet at current value.
- Reclaim the VAT in good time, that follows a different deadline.
- Include the ordinary costs in your first return and keep the supporting evidence.
Frequently asked questions
How far back can I deduct pre-start costs?
In practice up to five years before the start of your business, as long as you can show the costs related to that business. You deduct them in your first business year.
Can I deduct a laptop I bought last year?
Not in one go. You put it on your opening balance sheet at its value when you start using it for business, and depreciate that. Below € 450 you may take it straight to costs.
Do I get investment relief on pre-start purchases?
Generally not, because that relief belongs to the year you make the investment, when your business did not yet exist. So plan large purchases in your first business year instead.
And if my business never gets off the ground?
Then there is no source of income and the costs are not deductible. The deduction for pre-start costs depends on a business existing; without one it remains a private expense.
Sources
- Costs incurred in the pre-start phaseBelastingdienst · belastingdienst.nl
- Deducting pre-start costs from your taxKVK · kvk.nl
Sources checked on
This article provides general information based on the rules known for 2026 and does not replace personal tax advice. For your specific situation, we're happy to take a look with you.
