Healthcare benefit in the Netherlands

When are you entitled to the healthcare benefit?

Do you meet the conditions below? Then you are eligible for healthcare allowance in 2026.

Without a benefit partner

• Your means-tested income is no higher than €41.000.
• Your assets are no higher than €146.011. Assets include, for example, savings, shares, or a holiday home in the Netherlands or abroad.
• You are 18 years or older. From that age onward, you are required to have your own health insurance.
• You have Dutch health insurance.
• You have a Dutch nationality or a residence permit.

With a benefit partner

• Your combined means-tested income is no higher than €51.500.
• Your combined assets are no higher than €184.633.
• You are both 18 years or older. From that age onward, you are required to have your own health insurance.
• You both have Dutch health insurance.
• You have a Dutch nationality or a residence permit.

What is the annual income or means-tested income?

To calculate your benefit, the Tax Administration uses your annual income (also known as means-tested income). What is this? It is your (combined) gross income over an entire year for the Tax Administration minus any deductions. 

The most common deductions are:

• Mortgage interest
• Cost of financing your first home
• Penalty interest when refinancing a mortgage
• Alimony
• Study costs
• Work commuting expenses

Deductions reduce your taxable income for the Tax Administration. For example, a high salary can sometimes still entitle you to the healthcare benefit for a year. Every year, you can still apply for the healthcare benefit until September 1 with retroactive effect for the previous year. 

When do you receive the healthcare benefit?

The healthcare benefit is paid out on the 20th, 21st or 22nd of each month. The exact day varies from month to month. In this overview, you can see the payment days in 2026.

How can I apply for the healthcare benefit?

You must apply for the healthcare benefit from the Tax Administration yourself. This is not automatic, nor does your health insurer do it for you. On the Tax Administration website, you can log in to ‘Mijn Toeslagen’. You need your DigiD to do that. You then go through several steps to apply for the benefit. 

Note: applying for the healthcare benefit retroactively can be done until 1 September.

Still want to apply for the healthcare benefit for last year? This is possible until 1 September of the following year. So for the 2025 healthcare benefit, you can still apply until 1 September 2026.

Providing your exact income to the Tax Administration

When applying for the healthcare benefit, the Tax Administration asks for your annual income. It is important that you estimate this as precisely as possible. If by the end of the year your income was more than specified, you will have to repay the excess healthcare benefit you received.

The opposite also applies; if your income is less than you specified, you will receive the additional healthcare benefit you are entitled to. But it is important that you keep a close eye on this yourself. 

How do I submit changes?

Has your income or that of your benefits partner changed? If so, you must submit these changes to the Tax Administration. There are several reasons why your annual income may change:

• ​the size of your mortgage (and thus the amount of interest) changes.
• you incur more or less specific healthcare expenses that you report on your tax return.
• you have more or less deductions that you report on your tax return  

Did you receive too much healthcare benefit?

Did you receive more healthcare benefit than you are entitled to? If so, the Tax Administration first tries to offset this against the remaining payments. This means they withhold (part of) the healthcare benefit you have yet to receive. Is this not possible? Then you'll receive a payment slip. You must pay the excess amount back within 6 weeks. What happens with a late payment? Interest is added.

Are you unable to pay back the amount in one lump sum? Then you can make repayment arrangements with the Tax Administration. 

How can I stop the healthcare benefit?

Are you going to earn too much for healthcare benefit? Then notify the Tax Administration of your new income within 4 weeks. This avoids the possibility that you may receive too much healthcare benefit and have to pay it back the following year. It can very quickly add up to several hundred euros. 

The Tax Administration checks the value of your capital annually on January 1. Is your capital then too high? Then stop your healthcare benefit yourself to avoid having to repay. 

Do you live abroad?

Do you live abroad? Then you can only receive the healthcare benefit if you have work, benefits or a pension in the Netherlands. In that case, you are also required to have Dutch health insurance.