No Salary Paid? Your Dutch Payroll Return Still Matters

Dutch employers with an active payroll-tax filing obligation must file a return even when no wages were paid. The correct zero return depends on whether employees remained in service. That choice affects employee records, paid hours, insurance data and later corrections.

Why this matters

A nihilaangifte is for a period with no employees in service. It contains no employee details. A nulaangifte is for employees who remained in service but received no wages. Keep their details in the return. Enter zero for wages, payroll taxes and paid hours, while retaining the correct insurance details. The return, contracts, payroll file, ledger and bank account should describe the same month. The employer remains responsible for the facts, even when a payroll provider files the return.

Example

An employee remains under contract, but salary is delayed while the business waits for a customer invoice. No salary leaves the bank that month. The employee still belongs in the payroll return. The employer files a nulaangifte with the employee details and relevant zero values. A nihilaangifte would wrongly show that nobody was employed. The ledger may still show salary payable. Management should match that liability with the payroll file and cash plan.

XTROVERSO tips

• Check who remained employed. Use the employee list first. Record every starter, leaver and person who remained under contract during the filing period.
• Match four business records. Compare the return with employment contracts, the payroll file, the ledger and bank payments. Resolve any difference before filing.
• Include employees who received no wages. Where some employees were paid and others were not, include everyone. Use the right zero values, paid hours and insurance details for each employee.
• Review repeated nihilaangiften. Decide whether the business pause is temporary. Deregistration may be appropriate if there are no staff or wages and that will last at least 12 months. Keep filing until the tax authority confirms the end date.
• Keep the DGA annual check separate. A DGA paid annually may have nulaangiften during the year. Review the annual customary-wage file separately. For 2026, €58,000 is part of the comparison test.
• Ask for a monthly exception list. Ask the payroll provider to list starters, leavers, zero-wage employees, zero paid hours, delayed payments and corrections. The employer must supply the correct facts.

The data, sourcing, and analysis behind this article were conducted by Linda Pavan. AI was not used to identify sources, build the factual basis, or produce the analytical judgment contained here. AI was used only as a drafting aid. The final English text was personally reviewed, edited, and approved by Linda Pavan before publication.

References

• Nihilaangifte of nulaangifte: hoe zit het? · Salaris Vanmorgen
• Belastingdienst - Nihilaangifte versus nulaangifte
• Belastingdienst - Continuing filing obligation and employer deregistration
• Belastingdienst - Formal offboarding as an employer
• Belastingdienst - Paid hours and downstream data quality
• Belastingdienst - Corrections after an incorrect zero return
• Belastingdienst - DGA annual customary wage alongside periodic zero reporting
• Belastingdienst - Timeliness and use of payroll data by public bodies