Article 2:364 DCC: the main classification of the balance sheet
Article 2:364 DCC divides assets into fixed assets (intended to serve the business on a lasting basis) and current assets. You split the fixed assets into intangible, tangible and financial; the current assets into inventories, receivables, securities, cash and cash equivalents and prepayments and accrued income. The liabilities side consists of equity, provisions, liabilities and accruals and deferred income.
The short answer
Article 2:364 DCC divides assets into fixed assets (intended to serve the business on a lasting basis) and current assets. You split the fixed assets into intangible, tangible and financial; the current assets into inventories, receivables, securities, cash and cash equivalents and prepayments and accrued income. The liabilities side consists of equity, provisions, liabilities and accruals and deferred income.
Updated 30 October 2026
Key facts
| Place | Division 3, § 1 (Main classification of the balance sheet) |
| Current text since | 1 January 1984 (Stb. 1983, 663): unchanged since the introduction of Title 9 |
| Financial years | The main classification is the same for 2025, 2026 and 2027 |
| Guidelines | RJ 190.201–190.210 (fixed or current), RJ 224 and 258 (accruals and deferrals); RJk A2.105–A2.106 |
Paragraph 1: fixed or current
1. On the balance sheet, assets are distinguished into fixed and current assets, according to whether or not they are intended to serve the carrying on of the activity of the legal entity on a lasting basis.
What this means
The criterion is the purpose of the asset, not the kind of thing. A delivery van with which the BV serves its customers is a fixed asset. The same van in the showroom of a car dealer is inventory. Fixed is what keeps working in the business for longer than one production or service cycle (RJ 190.205). Current is what you sell or consume within the normal business cycle, what you hold briefly in order to sell, and cash (RJ 190.206; RJk A2.106).
For receivables the maturity helps. A loan that you grant to a customer for five years is a financial fixed asset; if part becomes due within twelve months, you either disclose that separately or place that part under the current assets, and you say which choice you made (RJ 190.207). The intention of the board also counts (RJ 190.209). The distinction serves the view of liquidity: current assets and current liabilities together show the working capital.
Paragraphs 2 and 3: the groups within the assets
2. Under the fixed assets, the intangible, tangible and financial fixed assets are included separately.
3. Under the current assets, the inventories, receivables, securities, cash and cash equivalents and, to the extent they are not stated under the receivables, the prepayments and accrued income are included separately.
What this means
These are the headings you see again as the Roman numerals in the Decree on annual accounts models. Each group has its own article: intangible, tangible, financial and the current assets.
Prepayments and accrued income are amounts you have paid in advance for costs of a following year, such as an insurance premium or a subscription, and income of this year that you still have to receive, such as interest. You may place them under the receivables or as a separate item, also after cash and cash equivalents (art. 12(1) of the Decree on annual accounts models). RJ 224.105 recommends a separate item only if the amount is significant.
Paragraph 4: the liabilities side
4. Under the liabilities, equity, provisions, liabilities and, to the extent they are not stated under the liabilities, accruals and deferred income are included separately.
What this means
Four groups: equity, provisions, liabilities and accruals and deferred income. The latter are amounts received in advance for a following year and costs of this year that you still have to pay, such as an invoice for December that arrives in January. These too may be included under the current liabilities. The difference from a provision: with accruals and deferred income the amount and timing are certain, with a provision one of the two is uncertain.
The exception for micro
3. The provisions of paragraphs 3 and 4 of article 364 on prepayments and accrued income and accruals and deferred income do not apply to the other operating expenses referred to in article 377(3)(j). The legal entity states the fact that no prepayments and accrued income or accruals and deferred income have been included at the bottom of the balance sheet.
A micro-entity may work without accruals and deferrals for the other operating expenses: a prepaid rent or an energy bill still to be paid then need not be on the balance sheet. If it chooses this, a statement under the balance sheet says that no prepayments and accrued income or accruals and deferred income have been included (RJk M1.302). For wages, interest and turnover, attribution continues to apply.
Case: twelve cars, two purposes
Kade Mobiliteit BV (fictional) rents out cars and sells used ones. At 31 December 2025 it has twelve cars: eight in the rental fleet and four in the showroom for sale. It also has a loan of € 90.000 to a franchisee, of which € 30.000 is repaid in 2026, a prepaid insurance premium of € 6.000, trade receivables of € 41.000 and € 55.000 in the bank.
| Asset | Purpose | Place on the balance sheet | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 rental cars | In lasting use | Tangible fixed assets | € 224.000 |
| Loan to franchisee, part after 2026 | Long-term financing | Financial fixed assets | € 60.000 |
| 4 cars in the showroom | Sale in the normal cycle | Inventories | € 124.000 |
| Repayment 2026 on the loan | Due within twelve months | Receivables | € 30.000 |
| Trade receivables | Sale and rental | Receivables | € 41.000 |
| Prepaid premium | Costs of 2026 | Prepayments and accrued income | € 6.000 |
| Bank balance | Cash | Cash and cash equivalents | € 55.000 |
| Total assets | € 540.000 |
Fixed assets together € 284.000, current assets € 256.000. Kade could also have left the whole loan under the financial fixed assets, stating that € 30.000 is due within a year. If it moves a car from the fleet to the showroom because it is going to sell it, the purpose changes; the carrying amount then goes from tangible fixed assets to inventory.
If Kade is a micro-entity, it shows only the totals of fixed and current assets (art. 2:395a(4) DCC). As a small legal entity it splits the headings as in the table, where receivables and prepayments and accrued income may be one item in model C.
By size class
| Class | What applies |
|---|---|
| Micro | Only paragraph 1: fixed and current assets as a total, with capitalised formation costs and called-up payments separately; on the liabilities side equity, provisions and liabilities as one item per group (art. 2:395a(4) DCC). Accruals and deferrals for other operating expenses may be omitted (paragraph 3). |
| Small | The whole article (art. 2:396(3) DCC): the three groups of fixed assets and the five groups of current assets, and the four groups of liabilities. |
| Medium-sized | The whole article, also in the published balance sheet (art. 2:397(5) DCC). |
| Large | The whole article. |
Common mistakes
- Classifying by useful life instead of by purpose. A durable item that you sell is inventory.
- Leaving the part of a long-term loan that is repaid within a year unnoticed under the financial fixed assets.
- Presenting a current account with the shareholder without a repayment agreement as a long-term receivable, while it is callable at any time.
- Leaving out accruals and deferrals because the invoice only came in the new year. Only micro may do that, and only for other operating expenses.
- Booking a certain debt with a fixed amount as a provision. Amount and timing known means: a debt or accruals and deferred income.
How it works in Jaarrekening.io
If a micro-entity chooses to leave out the accruals and deferrals for other operating expenses, Jaarrekening.io puts the required sentence under the balance sheet, in the prepared and the published version and in the XBRL file.
Sources
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between fixed and current assets?
Fixed assets are intended to serve the business on a lasting basis, longer than one production or service cycle: buildings, machinery, software, participating interests, long-term loans. Current assets you sell or consume within the normal cycle, or they are cash: inventories, receivables, short-term securities, cash and cash equivalents and prepayments and accrued income (art. 2:364 DCC).
Is a car a fixed or a current asset?
That depends on its purpose. A car that the business uses itself is a tangible fixed asset. A car that a car dealer has for sale is inventory and therefore current. If the purpose changes, the asset moves to another heading.
Must a micro-entity include accruals and deferrals?
Not for the other operating expenses, such as rent, energy and subscriptions (art. 2:395a(3) DCC). It then states at the bottom of the balance sheet that no prepayments and accrued income or accruals and deferred income have been included. For other items, such as wages, interest and turnover, attribution to the right year is still required.
Where do prepayments and accrued income appear on the balance sheet?
Under the receivables or as a separate item under the current assets (art. 2:364(3) DCC). The Decree on annual accounts models also allows a position after cash and cash equivalents. The RJ recommends a separate item only if the amount is significant.
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