BBZ - Self-employed in the Netherlands

If you work in the Netherlands as a self-employed person, you will be insured in the Netherlands for:

• the costs of medical care
• the costs of long-term nursing and care
• child benefit
• survivor benefit
• old age pension

Arranging your health insurance

You can register with a Dutch health insurer of your choice. You will then be entitled to reimbursement for the costs of medical care in the Netherlands and in Belgium. Reimbursements in Belgium are higher than in the Netherlands. If you would prefer to receive reimbursements directly from Belgium, ask your Dutch health insurer for an S1 form (which has replaced the E106 form) and register with a Belgian health insurance company.

The amount of the contributions (2012)

As a self-employed person, you will pay the following contributions:

• A 5.0% contribution under the Dutch Health Insurance Act (Zvw)
• A 17.9% contribution under the National Old Age Pensions Act (AOW)
• A 1.1% contribution under the National Survivor Benefits Act (Anw)
• A 12.15 % contribution under the National Act on Exceptional Medical Expenses (AWBZ)

All the above schemes charge contributions up to a certain maximum amount. Under the AOW, Anw and AWBZ schemes, you pay contributions on a maximum income of € 33,863 per year if you are under 65 or if you are 65 and were born in 1946, and € 34,055 per year if you are an employee aged 65 or over and you were born in or before 1945. Under the Zvw scheme, you pay contributions on a maximum income of € 50,064 per year.

A secondary job

If you are self-employed in the Netherlands and you also carry out work in paid employment in the Netherlands, you will be automatically insured for unemployment, sickness, and incapacity for work. You will be insured for the number of hours that you work in paid employment.

If you live in Belgium and you work as a self-employed person in the Netherlands as well as having paid employment in Belgium, you will only be insured in Belgium. You should then register with the Belgian National Institute for the Social Security of the Self-employed (RSVZ). You will find more information on the website of the RSVZ.