RJ 226 Securities and RJ 228 Cash and cash equivalents
RJ 226 determines how you value shares, bonds and funds that you hold as an investment or trading position; RJ 228 does the same for cash, bank balances and deposits. Under the RJ, listed shares must be measured at fair value. Under the RJk, cost or the lower market value is also allowed, and a micro-entity must choose that cost. Cash and cash equivalents are stated at nominal value.
The short answer
RJ 226 determines how you value shares, bonds and funds that you hold as an investment or trading position; RJ 228 does the same for cash, bank balances and deposits. Under the RJ, listed shares must be measured at fair value. Under the RJk, cost or the lower market value is also allowed, and a micro-entity must choose that cost. Cash and cash equivalents are stated at nominal value.
Updated 30 October 2026
Key facts
| Legal basis | art. 2:371 and 2:372 DCC (presentation), art. 2:384(1) and (7) DCC, art. 2:387 DCC, art. 2:390(1) DCC; arts. 5a and 10 Besluit actuele waarde (Current Value Decree) |
| Guidelines | RJ 226 Securities and RJ 228 Cash and cash equivalents, both amended 2019 and unchanged since financial year 2020; micro and small: RJk B6 and B7 |
| Excluded | Participating interests and joint ventures (RJ 214 and 215), derivatives (RJ 290) |
| Micro | No valuation at market value (art. 5a Besluit actuele waarde), so securities at cost or lower value |
Securities: the category determines the valuation
Securities are negotiable instruments such as shares, certificates, bonds and funds; options and other derivatives follow RJ 290. RJ 226 applies to what you hold as an investment or for trading, both under current assets and under financial fixed assets; interests in participating interests and joint ventures follow RJ 214 and 215 (RJ 226.102). On initial recognition a security is stated at fair value, in practice the purchase price. Transaction costs go straight to the result if the changes in value also run through the result, and otherwise into the initial measurement (RJ 226.201). After that it depends on the category:
| Category | Valuation under the RJ | Paragraph |
|---|---|---|
| Trading portfolio (bought to sell in the short term) | Fair value, changes in the result | RJ 226.203 |
| Listed shares held as an investment | Fair value; choice between recognition in the result or via the revaluation reserve | RJ 226.204 |
| Unlisted shares held as an investment | Cost or fair value | RJ 226.205 |
| Bonds you hold to maturity | Amortised cost | RJ 226.206 |
| Other bonds | Amortised cost or fair value | RJ 226.208 |
If there is no reliable market price for an unlisted security, you approximate the fair value using comparable instruments or a common valuation model; if that is not possible either, cost remains (art. 10 Besluit actuele waarde; RJ 226.209). Dividend and interest are shown in the profit and loss account under income from receivables and securities (RJ 226.302). If you value at cost while the fair value is higher, you state that higher value (RJ 226.303).
Revaluation reserve and impairments
Whether you form a revaluation reserve on an increase in value depends on the route and the listing (art. 2:390(1) DCC). If the increase runs through the result and the security is frequently quoted, no reserve is needed. If it runs through the result without frequent quotation, you keep a reserve equal to the increase. If you choose recognition through equity, the increase always goes into the reserve, and on sale it still goes to the result.
Per security the reserve may not become negative (RJ 226.204, 205 and 208; RJ 240). If a security falls below cost, that part is charged to the result. A later increase up to cost is then first a reversal in the result; only above that does the reserve start again.
The RJk route: chapter B6 for micro and small
The RJk leaves a simpler choice: cost, with a write-down to a lower fair value, or current value (art. 2:384(1) DCC; RJk B6.103). On the cost route you may write down per type of security or collectively, to the extent the whole group falls below the purchase price; you state which method you use (RJk B6.103 and B6.107). If you choose current value, increases in value may go straight to the result, but for unlisted securities you then do form a revaluation reserve (RJk B6.106). Stating a market value higher than the carrying amount is a consideration for small entities, not an obligation (RJk B6.107).
For the micro-entity a decree decides, not the guideline:
Valuation at market value is not permitted for a legal entity as referred to in article 395a of Book 2 of the Civil Code.
Because financial instruments must be stated at market value under current value (art. 10(1) Besluit actuele waarde), a micro-entity values its securities at cost or the lower market value. Writing down to a lower market value is not valuation at market value and is therefore allowed (RJk M1.303).
Cash and cash equivalents: nominal, and watch what is tied up
1. Cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand, balances on bank and giro accounts, as well as bills of exchange and cheques.
2. In respect of the balances, it is stated to what extent they are not at the free disposal of the legal entity.
- Valuation. Nominal value. If money is blocked or cannot be transferred, you take that into account in the valuation (RJ 228.201; RJk B7.103). You convert foreign currency according to RJ 122.
- Deposits. A deposit that you can withdraw immediately, possibly with loss of interest, may be included under cash and cash equivalents. If money is expected to be tied up for longer than twelve months, it belongs under financial fixed assets (RJ 228.301; RJk B7.102).
- State restrictions. Medium-sized and large legal entities give the nature and size of balances that are not freely available (art. 2:372(2) DCC; RJ 228.302). For small entities art. 2:372 is not on the list of art. 2:396(3) DCC; for a material amount, the true and fair view may still require it.
- G-account. You can use the balance on a blocked account for chain or subcontractor liability (G-rekening) only for payroll taxes, VAT and transfers to another G-account. It generally stays under cash and cash equivalents, with the statement that it is not freely available.
- Overdrawn. A negative bank balance is a debt to the bank (art. 2:375(1) DCC). Offsetting against a positive balance is only allowed if you have an enforceable right and intend to settle on a net basis (RJ 115.305).
Which text applies for 2025, 2026 and 2027
For securities and cash and cash equivalents nothing has changed over the next three financial years. RJ 226 and RJ 228 apply in the 2019 version since financial year 2020. RJk B6 dates from 2017 (in force since 2016) and B7 from 2023 (in force since financial year 2024); both remained the same in the 2025 to 2027 editions. What did move is in RJ 290: the general disclosure rules for financial instruments, to which RJ 226.306 refers, see RJ 290.
By size class
| Class | Securities | Cash and cash equivalents |
|---|---|---|
| Micro | Cost or lower market value; no current value (art. 5a Besluit actuele waarde) | Nominal; no notes |
| Small | Cost or current value (RJk B6); state write-down method; no breakdown of the securities required | Nominal; stating restrictions is not mandatory but sometimes needed for the true and fair view |
| Medium-sized | RJ 226 per category, listed shares at fair value; art. 2:371 DCC; RJ 290 paragraph 9 with the exemptions for medium-sized | State restrictions (art. 2:372(2) DCC), not required in the published version (art. 2:397(5) DCC) |
| Large | As medium-sized, but RJ 290 paragraph 9 in full | State restrictions, also in the published version |
Case study: an installation company with an investment fund and tied-up money
Installation company Duinkerk BV (fictitious) invests € 200.000 of surplus cash on 1 March 2025 in a single listed equity index fund, without the aim of thereby serving the business on a lasting basis: these are current securities. The price gives a value of € 190.000 at 31 December 2025 and € 230.000 at 31 December 2026. The transaction costs are negligible.
| Basis | Result 2025 | Result 2026 | Revaluation reserve end 2026 | Balance sheet end 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RJ: fair value through the result | − € 10.000 | + € 40.000 | None (frequently quoted) | € 230.000 |
| RJ: fair value through the revaluation reserve | − € 10.000 | + € 10.000 | € 30.000 | € 230.000 |
| RJk or micro: cost or lower market value | − € 10.000 | + € 10.000 (reversal up to cost) | None | € 200.000 |
On the second route, the fall in 2025 goes to the result, because the fund dropped below cost. In 2026 the recovery to € 200.000 is a reversal in the result; only the € 30.000 above that goes into the reserve, and it is released to the result on sale. On the cost route, Duinkerk as a small legal entity may state the market value of € 230.000 in the notes; as a medium-sized legal entity it may not choose that route for listed shares.
In addition, on 1 October 2026 Duinkerk ties up € 100.000 in an eighteen-month deposit that cannot be withdrawn earlier. At the balance sheet date fifteen months remain, so it is shown under financial fixed assets, not under cash and cash equivalents; the accrued interest is an accrued asset. Its G-account holds € 8.000: that stays under cash and cash equivalents, and as a medium-sized legal entity Duinkerk states in the prepared notes that this amount is not freely available.
Common mistakes
- Leaving listed investments at cost under the RJ; RJ 226.204 requires fair value.
- Valuing securities or an investment fund at market price as a micro-entity.
- Forming a revaluation reserve for frequently quoted shares whose increase already ran through the result, or forgetting one for an unlisted interest.
- Leaving a deposit that is tied up for longer than a year under cash and cash equivalents.
- Netting an overdrawn bank account against another account without a netting agreement.
How it works at Jaarrekening.io
In the notes questions of Jaarrekening.io, a medium-sized or large legal entity is asked whether balances and securities are not freely available, such as a blocked account or pledged securities, and up to what amount. For micro and small, the app does not ask that question, because the law does not prescribe it there. The choice between cost and fair value for your investments is yours to make.
Sources
Frequently asked questions
Does a BV have to value listed shares at market price?
Under the RJ, so for medium-sized and large entities and small ones that follow the full RJ, yes: listed shares that are not participating interests are stated at fair value (RJ 226.204). Under the RJk, a small BV (private limited company) may choose cost or the lower market value (RJk B6.103). A micro BV may not value at market value (art. 5a Besluit actuele waarde, the Dutch Current Value Decree).
Do I have to form a revaluation reserve for price gains on my investments?
Not if the price gain runs through the result and the securities are frequently quoted (art. 2:390(1) DCC). Yes if you take the gain directly to equity, or if it concerns unlisted securities whose increase in value has been taken to the result. The reserve is never negative per security.
Is a deposit a cash equivalent?
If you can withdraw it immediately, even with loss of interest, it may be included under cash and cash equivalents (RJ 228.301). If it is expected to be tied up for longer than twelve months, you classify it under financial fixed assets (RJ 228.301; RJk B7.102). A deposit that is released within twelve months but blocked until then is disclosed by medium-sized and large entities as not freely available.
How do I include a G-account in the annual accounts?
The balance usually stays under cash and cash equivalents, because you use it within a year to pay payroll taxes and VAT. Because you do not have free disposal of it, medium-sized and large legal entities state the amount and the restriction (art. 2:372(2) DCC; RJ 228.302). For small entities that disclosure is not required by law.
Read more
Preparing Dutch annual accounts?
Your first set of annual accounts is free, for every size class. Create an account and prepare the annual accounts of your Dutch company under Title 9 of Book 2 of the Dutch Civil Code.
Get started