Depreciation: how long and from what amount to capitalise?
A van, a laptop, a desk: when do you put it on the balance sheet and over how many years do you depreciate it? The law names no amounts and no years. It does give the rules with which you substantiate both yourself.
The short answer
There is no statutory amount from which you must capitalise: an expenditure that is useful for longer than a year and can be measured reliably belongs on the balance sheet. The threshold is your own policy. For tax purposes you may deduct directly below € 450 per business asset. The depreciation period is the expected useful life, not a fixed percentage.
Updated 30 October 2026
Key facts
| Law | art. 2:386(1) and (4) DCC: depreciation independent of the result, according to a system that fits the expected useful life |
| Guideline | RJ 212.201 (recognition), 212.417 up to and including 212.434 (depreciation); for micro and small RJk B2.116 up to and including B2.119 |
| Applies to | Financial years 2025, 2026 and 2027. RJk B2.116 up to and including B2.119 are unchanged between the 2025 and 2027 editions |
| Amounts | The law knows no capitalisation threshold or useful life: they are in your own accounting policies |
From what amount do you capitalise?
An expenditure goes on the balance sheet as a tangible fixed asset if it is probable that the benefit flows to your entity and the cost is reliably determined (RJ 212.201). The asset must also serve more than one period. The RJ (Dutch Accounting Standards Board guidelines) names no amount, nor does the RJk.
The capitalisation threshold is therefore policy. You set an amount per category, for example € 750 per independently usable business asset, and apply it the same way every year. That is defensible: the annual accounts must give a true and fair view (art. 2:362(1) DCC) and you leave out information that does not serve that view (RJ 115.201). If the threshold becomes so high that all small purchases together form a visible expense, the threshold is too high.
For tax purposes the Belastingdienst (Dutch Tax Administration) does name a threshold: it states that you may deduct a business asset of less than € 450 in one go as costs (source). That threshold does not bind your annual accounts. If you apply € 1.000 for accounting purposes, then for purchases between € 450 and € 1.000 you have a small difference with the tax return; that is not an error.
- One whole. A fit-out that works only together you assess as one asset, even if the parts each stay below the threshold.
- Expenditure after acquisition. You capitalise extension of capacity, quality improvement and replacement of an important component; ordinary maintenance and repair are expenses (RJ 212.206 and 212.447).
- Renovation of a rented property. You have no legal ownership, but you do have the economic benefit. If the expenditure meets the recognition criteria, you capitalise it (RJ 212.207).
How long do you depreciate: the useful life decides
You spread the cost less residual value over the period in which you expect to use the asset (art. 2:386(4) DCC; RJ 212.417). That useful life can be shorter than the technical life, for example because you replace the asset earlier, because it becomes obsolete or because a lease ends (RJ 212.432 and 212.433). You choose the method according to the pattern of use; straight-line is the usual choice (RJ 212.425).
The ranges below are orientation, not a norm. Adjust them to your own experience with comparable assets.
| Category | Usual range | What shortens or lengthens the period |
|---|---|---|
| Land | do not depreciate | only with a limited useful life, such as a landfill site (RJ 212.434) |
| Buildings (separate from the land) | 25 to 50 years | maintenance level; components such as roof and installations shorter |
| Machinery and installations | 5 to 15 years | intensive use, technical obsolescence |
| Fixtures and fit-out | 5 to 10 years | wear; with a renovation the term of the lease |
| Company cars | 4 to 8 years | mileage and own replacement policy |
| Computers and phones | 3 to 5 years | obsolescence and compatibility |
| Purchased software | 3 to 5 years | falls under intangible fixed assets (RJ 210) |
If an asset has components with a clearly different useful life and a significant cost, such as the roof of a building, you depreciate them separately (RJ 212.418 up to and including 212.420). Depreciation starts when the asset is available for its intended use, not on the payment date (RJ 212.427). If you later revise the useful life or the residual value, that works only prospectively, as a change in estimate (RJ 212.428).
Residual value and the tax method of calculation
The residual value is what you expect to receive for the asset at the end of its useful life, after deducting selling costs, expressed in today's prices for an asset of that age and condition. You depreciate down to that amount (RJ 212.429 and 212.430). It is often small and zero is defensible. A company car that you can still sell after five years does not have that value: a residual value that is too low depresses profit in the first years and yields book profit later.
The Belastingdienst calculates with (acquisition cost less residual value) divided by the expected useful life in whole years, with a maximum of 20% of the acquisition cost per year; for goodwill that is 10% (source). That maximum does not bind your accounting depreciation. Only if, as a micro or small legal entity, you apply the tax principles does it also apply in the annual accounts, and then only all tax principles together (art. 2:395a(7) DCC; art. 2:396(6) DCC). More on this: tax and commercial annual accounts.
Case: a van and twelve chairs
Van Vliet Installatietechniek BV, a small legal entity, buys a van on 1 April 2025 for € 38.000 (the VAT is deductible and does not count). The BV expects five years of use and expects to sell the van then for € 8.000, after selling costs. To be depreciated: € 30.000, straight-line € 6.000 per year. The van is ready for use on 1 April, so 2025 gets nine months.
| Financial year | Depreciation | Book value at 31 December |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 (9 months) | € 4.500 | € 33.500 |
| 2026 | € 6.000 | € 27.500 |
| 2027 | € 6.000 | € 21.500 |
| 2028 | € 6.000 | € 15.500 |
| 2029 | € 6.000 | € 9.500 |
| 2030 (3 months) | € 1.500 | € 8.000 |
| Total | € 30.000 | residual value € 8.000 |
At the start of 2028 it turns out the van can last four more years. The book value of € 21.500 less € 8.000 residual value, spread over four years, gives € 3.375 per year from 2028. The years 2025 up to and including 2027 remain unchanged; you state the nature and the effect if that is of importance. For tax purposes the BV may depreciate at most € 7.600 per full year (20% of € 38.000); it does not have to use that maximum. The accounting € 6.000 fits below it.
The same BV buys twelve office chairs at € 280 (together € 3.360). Its policy is € 750 per independently usable business asset: the chairs go straight to expenses, and for tax purposes each chair is below € 450. If it buys a partition fit-out of € 18.000 that works only as a whole, it capitalises that as one asset, even if the parts are cheap individually.
What do you state per size class?
| Class | Disclosure on depreciation |
|---|---|
| Micro-entity (balance sheet total ≤ € 450.000, net turnover ≤ € 900.000, < 10 employees) | No notes on the line items and no movement schedule (art. 2:395a(6) DCC). The measurement rules are the same (RJk M1.301) |
| Small legal entity (balance sheet total ≤ € 7,5 mln, net turnover ≤ € 15 mln, < 50 employees) | Accounting policies and depreciation methods in the notes (RJk B2.131); useful life or percentage is a recommendation (RJk B2.132). No movement schedule (art. 2:396(3) DCC) |
| Medium-sized legal entity (balance sheet total ≤ € 25 mln, net turnover ≤ € 50 mln, < 250 employees) | Useful life or percentages and a balanced movement schedule in the prepared annual accounts (RJ 212.701 and 212.702); the public version may be more limited (art. 2:397(5) DCC) |
| Large legal entity (balance sheet total > € 25 mln, net turnover > € 50 mln, ≥ 250 employees) | Everything from RJ 212.701 up to and including 212.703 and the movement schedule of art. 2:368 DCC |
Common mistakes
- Depreciating when it suits. The law asks for depreciation independent of the result of the year (art. 2:386(1) DCC). A good year is no reason to depreciate extra, a bad year no reason to skip.
- Depreciating land too. You account for land and building separately, even if you bought them together (RJ 212.434). Split the purchase price according to the deed or a valuation.
- Taking the tax 20% as the useful life. That leaves your own expectation unsubstantiated. Substantiate the period yourself.
- Starting at payment. Depreciation starts when the asset is available for use, not at the invoice.
Sources
- Art. 2:386 DCC: depreciation and impairment (wetten.overheid.nl, in Dutch)
- Art. 2:362 DCC: true and fair view and annual accounts (wetten.overheid.nl, in Dutch)
- Belastingdienst: how to calculate the amount of depreciation (in Dutch)
- Belastingdienst: depreciation and business assets under € 450 (in Dutch)
- Raad voor de Jaarverslaggeving (Dutch Accounting Standards Board): guidelines (in Dutch)
Frequently asked questions
From what amount must I capitalise an asset?
There is no statutory amount. You capitalise an expenditure that is useful for longer than a year and whose cost is reliably determined. For small purchases you set a threshold yourself and apply it consistently. For tax purposes you deduct a business asset of less than € 450 directly, but that threshold does not bind your annual accounts.
Over how many years do I depreciate a company car, laptop or machine?
As long as you expect to use the asset. Usual ranges are 4 to 8 years for cars, 3 to 5 years for computers and 5 to 15 years for machines, but that is orientation. Your experience, obsolescence and replacement policy are decisive.
May I depreciate a purchase immediately in the year of acquisition?
For accounting purposes you depreciate an asset with a useful life of more than a year systematically. Taking it directly to expenses is allowed if the amount stays below your capitalisation threshold. Tax facilities such as accelerated depreciation do not change your accounting depreciation automatically.
Must I keep depreciating if the asset still has value?
Yes, until the residual value is reached, even if the realisable value is higher than the book value. Repair and maintenance do not remove the need to depreciate (RJ 212.429). If the residual value has risen to the book value, the depreciation is zero.
Do I depreciate land and building together?
No. In principle you do not depreciate land, but you do depreciate a building. You split the purchase price into land and building. A rise in the value of the land does not change the amount to be depreciated on the building (RJ 212.434).
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