Bookkeeping for a self-employed coach or therapist
Written by Ilias Aarrass8 min read · Published on · Last reviewed on 
In short
The VAT exemption for care only applies if you practise a regulated healthcare profession or have an equivalent 240-credit bachelor's degree and your treatment is aimed at health; career, team and business coaching are taxed at 21 per cent.
- Exempt turnover means no deduction of VAT on your costs and investments in your practice room.
- If you have both exempt and taxed turnover, you split your input VAT in proportion to your turnover.
- Taxed letting of a practice room is only possible if the tenant uses it at least 90 per cent for taxed activities.
- Prepaid programmes or session cards are booked as amounts received in advance; the VAT is already due on payment.
Coaches, therapists and counsellors work in a field where the tax rules do not follow what you call yourself, but what exactly you do and which training you completed for it. Two people with the same business card can therefore have a completely different VAT position. That is exactly where things go wrong in this field: someone invoices without VAT for years and receives an additional assessment, or the other way round, someone pays VAT that was never due. This article explains how to determine which category you are in, what that means for your deductions, and how to set up the rest of your administration.
Exempt or taxed: two conditions
The VAT exemption for healthcare services has two conditions, and you must meet both. The first is about you: you practise a profession regulated by the Dutch healthcare professions act, or you have training at an equivalent quality level. The tax authorities interpret that second option as at least a completed higher professional bachelor's degree of 240 credits aimed at practising the profession, including basic medical knowledge.
The second condition is about your service: the treatment must be aimed at protecting, maintaining or restoring your client's health. A complaint-focused treatment meets that; career coaching, team coaching, stress prevention commissioned by an employer and personal development almost never do. If you do not meet both conditions, you invoice with 21 per cent VAT. That is not a punishment: you may then also deduct all the VAT on your costs and investments.
| Service | VAT |
|---|---|
| Treatment by a professional registered under the healthcare act, aimed at health | exempt |
| Treatment by someone with an equivalent degree, aimed at health | exempt |
| Career, team or business coaching | 21% |
| Training or courses, without registration as an accredited trainer | 21% |
| Vocational training with [accredited registration](kb:btw-vrijstelling-onderwijs-crkbo) | exempt |
| Secondment or hiring yourself out to a care institution | 21% |
A mixed practice: splitting is mandatory
Many practices do both: individual treatments that are exempt, and trainings or coaching for companies that are taxed. You then have a mixed practice and must split your turnover and your input VAT. Costs belonging only to the taxed part, such as materials for a training, are fully deductible. Costs belonging only to the exempt part are not at all. General costs such as your bookkeeping, your phone and your rent are divided in proportion to your turnover.
That split is workable, provided you set it up from the start. Create separate turnover accounts for exempt and taxed services and label your costs as you enter them. At year-end you calculate the final ratio and correct the provisional deduction in your last return. Exactly how that works is explained in splitting VAT between taxed and exempt turnover.
A practice with two kinds of turnover
- Exempt turnover
- € 36,000 from individual treatments
- Taxed turnover
- € 12,000 from coaching for employers, excluding VAT
- Ratio
- 25 per cent of turnover is taxed
- General costs
- € 1,600 of VAT on rent, software and administration
- Deductible
- 25 per cent of € 1,600, so € 400
Result: The rest of the VAT is a cost. If the ratio shifts between years, your deduction shifts with it: recalculate it every year rather than reusing last year's percentage.
Your practice room
If you rent a room, letting is in principle exempt from VAT. Landlords sometimes offer taxed letting, but that is only allowed if the tenant uses the space at least ninety per cent for taxed activities. If you are exempt, that is not possible and you get a rent invoice without VAT. That is not a problem: you could not have deducted that VAT anyway. See renting business premises.
If you work from home, the strict rules for a home workspace apply. Without a separate entrance and its own facilities, the room is not a workspace for tax purposes and you cannot deduct the costs of your home. What you do deduct is the furnishing you use for business: a treatment chair, a desk, equipment. See a workspace at home and setting up your home workplace.
- If you rent a room from a colleague by the half-day, keep the invoices; that is simply a cost.
- If you renovate a practice room, check whether it is an investment you have to capitalise.
- If you travel to clients, keep mileage records.
- Professional liability insurance and your registration with a professional body are deductible, see business insurance.
Appointments, no-shows and packages
Many practices work with cancellation terms: if a client cancels less than 24 hours in advance, you charge for the session. Whether VAT is due on that depends on whether it is a payment for a service or compensation for damage. With a genuine no-show fee without anything in return there is usually no VAT. See no-shows and cancellations. Either way, put your terms in writing, see general terms and conditions.
If you sell session cards or programmes the client pays for in advance, the money is not yet yours when it comes in. You book it as an amount received in advance and recognise it as turnover when the sessions take place. If you are liable for VAT, the VAT is already due at the moment of payment. See booking advances and deposits.
Frequently asked questions
Am I exempt from VAT as a coach?
Usually not. The exemption covers healthcare provided by someone with a regulated profession or equivalent training. Coaching aimed at work, career or development does not qualify and is taxed at 21 per cent.
I have a bachelor's degree in my field. Is that enough?
Only if it is a completed bachelor's degree of 240 credits aimed at practising the profession, including basic medical knowledge, and your treatment is aimed at health. Individual courses or a short training do not qualify.
What if I have both exempt and taxed turnover?
Then you split. You simply file VAT returns for the taxed part and deduct input VAT in proportion to your taxed turnover. Direct costs are allocated to the part they belong to.
Do I have to state VAT on my invoice if I am exempt?
No, and you are not allowed to. State that your services are exempt from VAT. If you do state VAT, you owe that VAT, even though it was not required.
Sources
- VAT exemption in healthcareBelastingdienst · belastingdienst.nl
- Medical professions at a quality level equivalent to the healthcare actBelastingdienst · belastingdienst.nl
- Examples of taxed medical servicesBelastingdienst · belastingdienst.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.
