Deductions freelancers often forget: the checklist
Written by Ilias Aarrass7 min read · Published on · Last reviewed on 
In short
The most forgotten deductions are uninvoiced kilometres at € 0.25, business costs paid privately, bank charges, and the investment deduction above € 2,900 of yearly investment.
- Parking and tolls count separately only with a company car; with a private car they are already inside the € 0.25 per kilometre.
- Business meals, conferences and study trips are partly deductible: a € 5,700 threshold is subtracted, or you deduct 80 per cent of those costs.
- For mixed costs you deduct the business share, provided you can substantiate the split; a number plucked from thin air will not hold.
- Forgotten deductions from earlier years are not necessarily lost: within five years you can request an official reduction.
Nobody forgets the big expenses: your laptop, your phone, the rent of your workspace. But it is precisely the small, recurring costs that together add up to hundreds or thousands of euros in deductions per year, and that often go unrecorded in practice. This article walks through the most forgotten deductions, so you can tick them off before closing your books.
Small recurring costs
Bank fees on your business account, transaction fees from your payment provider, your accounting software, cloud storage, your domain name and hosting: all small amounts that recur monthly and are fully deductible. Enter them once as recurring items in your records and you will never miss them again. For foreign services, make sure you keep the actual invoices, not just the debit on your account.
Also often forgotten: professional association fees, trade literature and subscriptions to journals or knowledge platforms. As long as they demonstrably relate to your business, they are deductible.
Kilometres you do not record do not exist
The trip to a client usually makes it into the records. But the kilometres to a networking event, a supplier, the hardware store, a course or an introductory meeting that led nowhere? Those are business kilometres too, at 0.25 euros per kilometre in 2026. With two forgotten trips a week, that quickly adds up to hundreds of euros over a year. Record every business trip immediately in your mileage log, or use an app that tracks it for you.
If you travel by public transport or bicycle for work, public transport costs are fully deductible and a private bicycle carries the same 0.25 euros per kilometre. Parking only counts separately if you drive a company car; with a private car, parking and tolls are already inside that 0.25 euros per kilometre.
Business meals, conferences and entertainment
Costs for business lunches and dinners, conferences, seminars and study trips are partially deductible: by default a fixed threshold of 5,700 euros is subtracted, or you opt to deduct 80% of these costs. The VAT on food and drinks in hospitality is not deductible, but the costs themselves largely are. Many freelancers do not record these items at all because they find the rules complicated, and thereby forfeit deductions. Keep the receipt, note who you met and why, and record the expense.
Courses, training and coaching
Training that maintains or deepens the knowledge and skills for your current business is deductible as a business expense. Think of a professional course, a certification, a masterclass or business coaching. The travel costs to get there and any study materials count too. Training for an entirely different profession falls outside this, but the boundary is wider than many entrepreneurs think.
The checklist before your return goes out
Run through this list every year; the items below are skipped most often in practice, precisely because they do not land in your records by themselves.
- Kilometres you do not invoice: to suppliers, the hardware store, networking events and courses, at € 0.25 each.
- Business costs accidentally paid privately; book them in after all via a private contribution.
- The business share of phone and internet, even with the subscription in your private name.
- Bank charges on your business account and payment-provider transaction fees.
- Professional literature, software subscriptions and mandatory registrations or certifications.
- The small-scale investment deduction above € 2,900 of yearly investment; the return does not apply it unless you tick it.
- The partner deduction if your partner helped 525 hours or more without pay.
- Healthcare costs and gifts as personal deductions in the private part of your return.
Frequently asked questions
Which deduction is forgotten most often?
Uninvoiced kilometres: trips to suppliers, courses and networking events. At a few thousand kilometres a year, € 0.25 each adds up substantially.
Can I still claim business costs paid privately?
Yes, with the invoice as evidence you book them as a private contribution. VAT is reclaimable only if the invoice meets the requirements; your business name is safest.
I forgot a deduction last year. Is it lost?
No. As long as the assessment is not final, simply refile the return. After that you can request an official reduction up to five years back.
Do small receipts really add up?
Yes. Printer paper, a cable, a trade journal, a postage label: individually trivial, together quickly hundreds of euros of yearly deduction. Scanning immediately is the only way not to lose them.
Do these items also apply under the small business scheme?
For income tax, yes: the scheme touches only VAT. Your costs and kilometres still lower your profit; only the VAT on costs is not reclaimable.
Where do I find the full list of deductible costs?
See which costs are deductible for the overview of what is fully, partly and not deductible, including the four test questions per expense.
Sources
- Business use of a private vehicle: € 0.25 per kilometreBelastingdienst · belastingdienst.nl
- Threshold for partly deductible costs 2026Belastingdienst · belastingdienst.nl
- Small-scale investment deduction 2026Belastingdienst · 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.
